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Many factors are involved in crafting a compelling villain for a science fiction movie. After all, the bad guys often tend to be just as captivating than the heroes. Of course, one key element in designing a proper villain is giving them a purpose; a clear goal for them to be trying to achieve, particularly one that directly combats the objectives of the hero. Every so often, a film takes this idea so far as to include an antagonist who, when you think about it, actually has a very valid reason for doing what they do.

This is not to say that all of their actions are completely defensible; many villains are given that title because of the violent/excessive methods they use to achieve their goals. However, at the end of the day, it is difficult to deny that they did have understandable motivations. Having ideas that the viewers...

The upcoming show Blade Runner 2099 is taking the approach to the world of replicants that Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049 should have. Though there isn't much information about Blade Runner 2099 yet, what is publicly known about the Amazon Prime Video show is extremely promising. Michelle Yeoh landed the lead role in Blade Runner 2099, and Hunter Schafer was also cast in a currently unnamed role. Yeoh's character, Olwen, in particular, seems to hint that the story of Blade Runner 2099 will be intriguing as well, as Olwen has been described as a replicant at the end of her lifespan.

Aside from the fact that it's a show instead of a movie, there are a few ways Blade Runner 2099 already seems very different from Blade Runner 2049. Ridley Scott, the director of the original Blade Runner, and his production company, Scott Free, are helping to produce 2099. Denis...

Hollywood’s most macho liberals pack this action western with cheating, double crosses, rampant greed, uncouth heroes and decadent sneering villains… and that’s not counting the wall-to-wall revolutionary carnage. Toothy Burt Lancaster and philosophical Gary Cooper double-deal with cannon-fodder Juaristas and Cesar Romero’s decadent Frenchman, to steal a fortune in gold. Francois Truffaut called it ‘the first cynical western.’ Robert Aldrich’s direction emphasizes wince-inducing violence. The ‘dirty dozen’- like supporting freebooters include Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jack Elam and Archie Savage. This eye-opening blockbuster strongly influenced Sergio Leone’s Italo westerns made ten years later.

Vera Cruz

Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1954 / Color / 1:2.0 widescreen (Superscope) / 94 min. / Street Date October 12, 2021 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95

Starring: Burt Lancaster, Gary Cooper, Sarita Montiel, George Macready, Denise Darcel, Morris Ankrum, Charles Buchinsky (Bronson), Ernest Borgnine. Jack Elam, Henry Brandon, Archie Savage, Jack Lambert.

Cinematography: Ernest Laszlo

Production Designer: Alfred Ybarra...

Murder strikes a private college. In the new security guard’s efforts to find the killer, he uncovers sordid secrets and multiple unsavory conspiracies. Triple-threat Burt Lancaster boasts directing and screenwriting credits here, and heads a large, exemplary cast of suspects in a mystery that implicates practically all of them in something illegal.

The Midnight Man

Blu-ray

Kl Studio Classics

1974 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 117 min. / Street Date February 26, 2019 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95

Starring: Burt Lancaster, Linda Thorpe, Cameron Mitchell, Morgan Woodward, Harris Yulin, Robert Quarry, Joan Lorring, Lawrence Dobkin, Ed Lauter, Mills Watson, Charles Tyner, Catherine Bach, Bill Lancaster, Quinn K. Redeker, Peter Dane, Linda Kelsey, William Splawn, Nick Cravat.

Cinematography: Jack Priestley

Film Editor: Frank Moriss

Original Music: Dave Grusin

Written by Roland Kibbee, Burt Lancaster from a book by David Anthony

Produced and Directed by Roland Kibbee & Burt Lancaster

Carrying a reputation as an intelligent low-key murder mystery, 1975’s...

Joan Lorring, 1945 Best Supporting Actress Oscar nominee, dead at 88: One of the earliest surviving Academy Award nominees in the acting categories, Lorring was best known for holding her own against Bette Davis in ‘The Corn Is Green’ (photo: Joan Lorring in ‘Three Strangers’) Best Supporting Actress Academy Award nominee Joan Lorring, who stole the 1945 film version of The Corn Is Green from none other than Warner Bros. reigning queen Bette Davis, died Friday, May 30, 2014, in the New York City suburb of Sleepy Hollow. So far, online obits haven’t mentioned the cause of death. Lorring, one of the earliest surviving Oscar nominees in the acting categories, was 88. Directed by Irving Rapper, who had also handled one of Bette Davis’ biggest hits, the 1942 sudsy soap opera Now, Voyager, Warners’ The Corn Is Green was a decent if uninspired film version of Emlyn Williams’ semi-autobiographical 1938 hit play about an English schoolteacher,...

Gary Oldman as Jackie Flannery in State Of Grace (Phil Joanou, 1990, USA):

Long considered one of the most talented actors in cinema, it’s very strange that his outstanding acting as the younger brother of Ed Harris’ local crime boss in this underrated film doesn’t get talked about nearly enough when discussing Oldman’s body of work. This is a must-see performance for all Oldman fans. For the record, State Of Grace is a far better Irish mob film than The Departed (Martin Scorsese, 2006, USA), primarily because it contains much better acting across the board. Oldman was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Tomas Alfredson, 2011, UK/France).

Other notable Gary Oldman performances: Prick Up Your Ears (Stephen Frears, 1987, USA), Dracula (Francis Ford Coppola, 1992, USA), True Romance (Tony Scott, 1993, USA), Leon: The Professional (Luc Besson, 1994, France), Air Force One (Wolfgang Petersen, 1997, USA), The Contender (Rod Lurie,...

By Daniel Portilla

Click here for the original article.

Following with the films we will recommend every week, this time we want to introduce “Blade Runner”. Another classic from the ’80 that shows a future Los Angeles with an atmosphere that intents to shape the urban space within which we will move in the current century. The soundtrack, composed by Vangelis deserves to be mentioned as it plays a fundamental role in the comprehension of this futuristic American city.

More info after the break.

Main Info

Original Title: Blade Runner

Year: 1982

Runtime: 117 min.

Country: United States

Director: Ridley Scott

Writer: Hampton Fancher, David Peoples y Roland Kibbee

Soundtrack: Vangelis

Photography Director: Jordan Cronenweth

Cast: Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos, Daryl Hannah

Plot

In Los Angeles 2019, humans have genetically engineered Replicants, which are essentially humans who are designed for labor and entertainment purposes. They are illegal on earth,...

Your weekly fix of great movies made before you were born that you should check out before you die. This week’s Old Ass Movies celebrates the nonsense of the best American comedians of all time. Groucho, Harpo and Chico move in on Bogart’s territory by setting up camp at a hotel in Casablanca, mocking Nazis, playing with a toupee, and remembering to set their watches. A Night in Casablanca (1946) Directed By: Archie Mayo Written By: Joseph Fields & Roland Kibbee Starring: Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx, Sig Ruman, Lisette Verea, Lois Collier, and Charles Drake Selling someone on watching a Marx Brothers movie should be as easy as standing on the street corner offering free bacon, but A Night in Casablanca isn’t the typical Marx movie. It certainly shouldn’t be the first a newcomer should see, since that distinction goes to Duck Soup. It shouldn’t even be the second or third film...