4v291o

Watched on Tuesday June 10, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday June 10, 2025.

Watched on Monday June 9, 2025.

Okay today i’m gonna say something actually controversial. Lex is the greatest final WOMAN of all time. 

(I think she qualifies as a “final girl” but watched the commentary and Sanaa Lathan very professionally corrected Anderson and Henriksen when they referred to her and another character as “girls” instead of women. One of them almost did it again like 40 mins later but managed to correct HIMSELF which was nice.)

Watched on Sunday June 8, 2025.

Watched on Sunday June 8, 2025.

Watched on Saturday June 7, 2025.

Watched on Friday June 6, 2025.

Watched on Friday June 6, 2025.

Watched on Friday June 6, 2025.

Watched on Friday June 6, 2025.

Watched on Friday June 6, 2025.

Watched on Friday June 6, 2025.

Watched on Thursday June 5, 2025.

Watched on Thursday June 5, 2025.

Watched on Thursday June 5, 2025.

Watched on Thursday June 5, 2025.

Watched on Wednesday June 4, 2025.

Watched on Wednesday June 4, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday June 3, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday June 3, 2025.

Watched on Monday June 2, 2025.

Watched on Monday June 2, 2025.

Watched on Saturday May 31, 2025.

Watched on Friday May 30, 2025.

Watched on Thursday May 29, 2025.

Watched on Thursday May 29, 2025.

Watched on Thursday May 29, 2025.

Watched on Wednesday May 28, 2025.

Watched on Wednesday May 28, 2025.

Watched on Monday May 26, 2025.

Watched on Monday May 26, 2025.

Watched on Friday May 23, 2025.

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Watched on Sunday May 25, 2025.

Watched on Sunday May 25, 2025.

Watched on Saturday May 24, 2025.

Watched on Saturday May 24, 2025.

Watched on Friday May 23, 2025.

Watched on Thursday May 22, 2025.

i loooooove when they trap tom cruise behind any sort of metal door and he gets sooooo mad and starts rattling the bars because my pet bunnies do the same thing in their play pen

Watched on Wednesday May 21, 2025.

Watched on Wednesday May 21, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday May 20, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday May 20, 2025.

Watched on Tuesday May 20, 2025.

Watched on Monday May 19, 2025.

This review may contain spoilers.

This review contains spoilers for Predator, Predator 2, and AVP. There are many lenses of analysis that I did not explore in my write-up. My primary focus here is on the conception of the Predator as “ugly” from the perspective of humans. I will be interested to educate myself more on the gender, racial and historical politics of these films.

In Predator (1987), the yautja (Predator species) takes off the mask in order to face Dutch (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in unarmed hand to hand combat. Dutch says “one ugly motherfucker” basically to himself as he processes the creature’s appearance. It’s just an automatic response to the sight of a completely foreign as well as threatening species. I don’t think it’s a ridiculously unwarranted reaction in the moment, since there was never any space given for meaningful communication between the two fighters. Dutch has spent the entire film just trying to survive his encounter with the yautja (survival meaning kill or be killed).

Obviously that became an iconic line, and it is revisited in Predator 2 by Mike Harrigan (Danny Glover) who is also a strong man capable of violence and trained in using lethal force. Gary Busey’s character, leader of the special task force attempting to capture the Predator, delivers a basic lecture on the yautja’s tactics, so when he finallybcomes face to face with the creature, Harrigan is more prepared to battle it than Dutch was in the first film. Harrigan is also explicitly out for revenge at this point, having been enraged by the Predator’s murder of his partner. He guns down the yautja, who is lying prone and bullet-ridden by the time Harrigan comes over to remove the mask. While the moment is played for comedy by the time the yautja finishes the phrase, the beginning still acts as a moment for our human protagonist to unquestioningly mock an extraterrestrial’s appearance and gloat over his supposed human victory.

The responses of these men make sense in their films. They are trained in the usage of violence against potential threats, and the Predator is a very real threat to their lives. These hostile, life or death relationships with the yautja in Predator and Predator 2 influence how the human protagonists perceive them, allowing for the normalization of the pejorative “ugly motherfucker” when seeing one of the creature’s bare faces.

What Predator 2 does do to deepen the lore and establish a tenuous connection between the two species is to have the older yautjas show up when Harrigan kills the first predator and gift him with a trophy, showing that they respect his ability to fight to the death. His life is spared because he emerged victorious in battle. In the behind-the-scenes feature for Predator 2, Danny Glover specifically says that he refuses to call the yautja “monsters”, opting instead to refer to them as “otherworldly creatures”. While this species will never be relatable or even understandable to most humans, the yautja species as a whole is arguably “de-monsterized” in Predator 2 by these final scenes inside the spaceship in which we see an elaboration on their culture and a willingness on their part to let Harrigan live.

Given the first two films, we can describe a Predator movie as one in which a tough, violent man sees his fellow tough and violent men brutally murdered by a creature even stronger than them, all for the sake of sport on the creature’s end. The man responds by using all of his own powers to attempt to kill this alien creature. The “ugly motherfucker” line is incorporated into both of these films to confront alien violence with an assertion of inherent human superiority in appearance, giving the protagonist confidence in their battle against the aesthetically displeasing creature.

AVP: Alien vs. Predator defies the Predator movie formula defined above. This is achieved by establishing an even scarier, more inhuman, less principled “monster”: the xenomorph. As far as I have seen, there is no chance of reasoning with or surviving alongside a xenomorph, which uses other species as hosts for its reproductive cycle, violently killing them when the newborn bursts to life. When the xenomorph, yautja, and humans come together in front of a human audience, the xenomorph becomes “Alien”. By asserting that the xenomorph is the alien in the room, the yautja becomes more “acceptable” by comparison.

The human hero of AVP, Lex, is not trained in combat. She is still physically hardy, but there is a major emphasis on her intelligence. Her character has a strong drive to survive, and she quickly sees the possibility of teaming up with the Predator to take down a common enemy. Since she is not actively the target of its hunt, Lex is able to perceive positive qualities in this killer alien, despite its significant differences from her own species. Lex is given the opportunity to observe the yautja more than the characters of previous Predator films because she is not in imminent physical danger from it.

AVP also goes beyond the typical single unmasking scene by including two of them, the first only partially visible to the audience. At this point in the film, Lex and Sebastian, the archaeologist she is with, witness the film’s primary yautja, “Scar”, kill a xenomorph before unmasking and scarring his own face with the xenomorph’s blood (this yautja doesn’t have a name or arguably a confirmed gender within the film but I am going off of how Wikipedia refers to him). The audience of the film is only able to view Scar’s face from multiple obscured angles. What is highlighted in this scene is Lex and Sebastian watching and coming to an understanding of the yautja’s behavior. The creature’s unmasking and subsequent marking become an insightful moment for the humans as Sebastian describes what Scar is doing. Importantly, the aesthetic appeal or lack thereof of the Predator’s face is not commented upon. The denial of a clear view for the audience ensures that they too are unable to confidently comment on the possible ugliness of the foreign species.

In her next conversation with Sebastian, Lex declares her intention to work with the Predator in order to protect Earth from xenomorph infestation. While this stated reason is fully altruistic, it is very likely that she also realizes that her own chance of survival will increase greatly with the Predator on her side. She attempts to give the (re-masked) yautja’s gun back but must first kill a xenomorph in self defense. Scar then kills a few more xenomorphs before beginning to walk away from Lex, who follows him and says “Hey. I’m coming with you, you hear me, you ugly creature?” This is the only time the Predator species is called ugly in AVP, and it is more a cry for attention than an attempted put-down. What follows is a spectacular illustration of inter-species cooperation as Lex and Scar kill their way through the pyramid before finally making it to the surface.

Since the movie is PG-13, only one usage of the word “fuck” is possible. “Ugly”, however, is safe to be repeated multiple times. Tracking the usage of both of these words reveals the film’s biases and moments of emphasis on specific lines of dialogue. The first usage of “ugly” comes from one of the armed escorts as he succumbs to a xenomorph, calling it an “ugly son of a bitch” in his final moments (tough guys with guns don’t make it around here). Next comes Lex’s call to the Predator (quoted above) when she is just beginning to ally herself with him and is not yet comfortable working alongside this extraterrestrial species.The single usage of “fuck” comes in a moment of clear and cooperative communication between Lex and Scar. He uses hand signals to indicate he has a bomb to use against the xenomorphs and she declares “I hope it kills every fucking one of them.” This one allowance of the expletive is thus uncoupled from the word “ugly” and is instead utilized to express emphatic of the Predator’s methods against the xenomorphs. The final “ugly” moment is when Lex and Scar are frantically battling aliens at the surface before the bomb goes off. She stabs at an alien and says “You are one ugly mother-” before killing it. This callback to the traditions of Predator films has been re-weaponized against the xenomorph, shielding the yautja from the attack of the slur as it is Scar who Lex is fighting beside against this “ugly” new threat.

When the yautja takes off his mask the second time, the audience finally gets a full view of his face. Lex does not say anything in reaction to his appearance, modeling an acceptance previously unseen in any Predator film. She even allows Scar to scar her own face, which he does to honor her victory over the xenomorphs. Lex accepts this physically painful ritual because she is willing to engage with another species whose traditions are completely different than hers, and ultimately accept these differences. Lex’s method of surviving AVP wholly disrupts the paradigm of Predator films as her goal is achieved not by dominating or killing the yautja, but by working alongside it. Yes, she still has to kill alien creatures in the form of xenomorphs. But her automatic response was not violence against every unfamiliar being she saw; rather, it was to assess the situation and to make an informed choice on how to get through it. She hereby demonstrates to the audience the possibility of breaking with the series’ conventions, and of empathy and cooperation with someone “different,” even a creature previously cinematically established as an “ugly motherfucker.”

Also, I love it when they FIGHT each other OH YEAH! When he YANKS HIM AROUND BY THE TAIL WHEEE. And I hope everyone had a nice time reading my review :) THANK YOU TO MY TRUSTY EDITORS RUBY AND TRISTAN!!

Watched on Sunday May 18, 2025.

Watched on Sunday May 18, 2025.

or as isabel called it, "bad representation"

• Mercy
• Boom!
• Reflections in a Golden Eye
• Equus
• The Music Lovers
• Acting on Impulse

  kinda offensive

• Zee and Co.
• Nurse 3-D

  fairly offensive

• She Hate Me

  IM not gonna call it offensive but um reading the reviews is free... Lol

• Little Caesar

  read the subtext luv

...plus 2 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• The Fan

  mystery

• The Prince of Tides

  drama

• Hollywood Boulevard

  horror

  missing 

• The Other

  horror

• The Spiral Staircase

  mystery

• Peeping Tom

  mystery

• The Maids

  drama

• Any Number Can Win

• La Ceremonie

  fr

• The Furies

  drama

...plus 36 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

released in 2025 at my local theater(s)

1. Presence
2. The Rule of Jenny Pen
3. On Swift Horses
4. Den of Thieves 2: Pantera
5. Seven Veils
6. Final Destination Bloodlines
7. The Visitor
8. The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie
9. Ballerina
10. Paddington in Peru

...plus 13 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Thank you everyone who recommended me something over the years🩷
Tell me if I accidentally put a wrong movie on since there's some with multiple movies having the same title...
the ones i’ve watched are ranked at the end! (starting with bride of frankenstein)

• The Ward
• In the Mouth of Madness
• End of the Line
• Inside
• The Chaser
• Jacob's Ladder
• Pontypool
• We Are What We Are
• Vampyr
• The Broken

...plus 102 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

SOOOO GLAD to be in LA again and see classic cinema on the big screen regularly

1. Red Desert

   rewatch

2. The Lady Eve

   rewatch 

3. The Color of Money

   rewatch 

4. Mamma Mia!
5. The Young Girls of Rochefort

   rewatch 

6. Titanic

   rewatch

7. Grease

   rewatch 

8. Dog Day Afternoon
9. Jaws

   rewatch (although it had been about 15 years)

10. Persona

    rewatch 

...plus 6 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

Happy 100th birthday Paul! (January 26th)

• Absence of Malice
• Harper
• Hombre
• Hud
• The Left Handed Gun
• Nobody's Fool
• Slap Shot
• Somebody Up There Likes Me
• The Verdict
• WUSA

...plus 2 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Rhubarb
• Night Train
• Thief
• AVP: Alien vs. Predator
• 28 Weeks Later
• Sweet Charity
• The Rule of Jenny Pen
• Presence
• Thesis

These are all about 3.5-4 star films. MAYBE 4.5. Didn't seen anything I liked more than that.

• Fade to Black
• The Trial
• Victor Frankenstein
• You Should Have Left
• Spy
• Theodora Goes Wild
• Lethal Weapon 2
• Atlantic City
• Red Rooms
• The Haunting

...plus 4 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

love em

• Red Desert
• Bonnie and Clyde
• From Here to Eternity
• Psycho
• Casablanca
• The Philadelphia Story
• Mamma Mia!
• Some Like It Hot
• Quiz Show
• Brooklyn

...plus 9 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Do the Right Thing
• Vanilla Sky
• Talk Radio
• The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
• Birthday Girl
• Sorority House Massacre

  
  

• She Hate Me
• Opus

  okay i mean this movie was about a musician so not THAT unexpected plus they didn’t even say bruce’s name but they did namedrop nebraska

films of core importance to the crime romance genre (as defined by me)
they dont have to be full blown romances but at least somewhat romance adjacent. and i guess they don't even have to be full blown crimes but the characters have to occupy space outside what is regarded as "law abiding society"
sowwy i know there's more films that fit the description but these are just ones i like

• Jewel Robbery
• One Way age
• Trouble in Paradise
• You Only Live Once
• This Gun for Hire
• Double Indemnity
• Pierrot le Fou
• Bonnie and Clyde
• Pretty Poison
• Aloha, Bobby and Rose

...plus 11 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Psycho
• Psycho II
• Psycho III
• Psycho IV: The Beginning
• The Tin Star
• Friendly Persuasion
• Crimes of ion
• How Awful About Allan
• The Trial
• Pretty Poison

...plus 2 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

• Bound
• Bride of Chucky
• Magnolia
• Out of the Blue
• Suddenly, Last Summer

What hasn't this man done? This summer we will attempt to answer that question with a 14 week marathon of films featuring the one and only Udo Kier. I already know @rosieroobud will be partaking, and we would love to have as many people as possible . If you don't know who this guy is; us! We're going to start with a film he stars in and then the rest of the summer will be like a game of I Spy Udo since he has tiny parts in a lot (most) of these.
This will be starting on May 28th and go to the end of August, so if you watch any of these films write a review and tag with #ITM4U
Bonus points for watching the Madonna music video featuring Udo.
Viewing Schedule:
May 28-June 3: Blood for Dracula
June 4-10: Suspiria
June 11-17: Europa
June 18-24: Armageddon
June 25- July 1: Halloween
July 2-8: The Editor
July 9-15: Dogville
July 16-22: Werewolf Women of the SS
July 23-29: Blade
July 30-5: Keyhole
August 6-12: Shadow of the Vampire
August 13-19: UFO in Her Eyes
August 20-26: The Forbidden Room
August 27- September 2: My Own Private Idaho

Also if you're looking for something unique to watch try seances.nfb.ca/ which apparently has udo in some segments...

BONUS FILMS-- watch these whenever you want and tag your reviews #ITM4U -- he's been in like every Von Trier film and I am not about to make those mandatory viewing (although I will be watching one...):
Melancholia✅
Exposé✅
Flesh for Frankenstein✅
Altes Geld (TV series)✅
Mark of the Devil✅
Cigarette Burns✅

• Blood for Dracula
• Suspiria
• Europa
• Armageddon
• Halloween
• The Editor
• Dogville
• Blade
• Keyhole
• Shadow of the Vampire

...plus 10 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.

letterboxd.sitesdebloques.org/cjprobst83/list/for-queen-and-country-a-bond-a-thon/

I will be watching and ranking all the James Bond films during April with all the lovely folks found in the above list :)

Favorite songs
1. Diamonds are Forever
2. Nobody Does it Better
3. Die Another Day
4. James Bond Theme

I don't have a favorite James Bond performance. Favorite characters would be Solitaire for her #Look and Camille because she didn't have to have sex with Bond nor did she die! my queen!

1. Live and Let Die
2. Octopussy
3. GoldenEye
4. Quantum of Solace
5. Diamonds Are Forever
6. Dr. No
7. Spectre
8. The Living Daylights
9. Die Another Day
10. The World Is Not Enough

...plus 14 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.