Aliens (1986), Alien 3 (1992), Alien: Resurrection (1997)

 I saw 'Alien' (1979) back in the 90's and I've since seen two of the prequel films, otherwise this is a vastly under consumed franchise for me, especially given its prominence. Well it's seemingly all on HBO Max at the moment, so I thought I'd check some of these boxes off.

I rewatched 'Alien', it holds up, then on to 'Aliens' in which James Cameron took over from Ridley Scott. The movie does a better then anticipated job of wrapping up lose threads from the first film (the cat lives), takes some time getting started, adds some space marines, and gives us one of the most solid third acts in action movie history. ****

'Alien 3' was more devicive then it's predecessors, but I really liked David Fincher's take, very solid screenplay, took some unexpected directions, who could have anticipated prisoners turned warrior monks? ***1/2

'Alien: Resurrection'. Ripley dies at the end of the third one, but a successful franchise can not be stopped. Ripley finds herself brought back as a clone roughly 200 years after the events of the last film, as part of that damned corporations obsession with finding a way of monitizing the deadly xeniomorph via their weapons division. This isn't on the level of the first three, but I appreciated that the Ripley clone is allowed to develop into a character distinct from the original. ***

I got about 15 minutes into 2004's 'Alien vs Predator' before decideding it wasn't worth my time, too bland for its own good, not even an interesting failure. The one thing I'll give it is that by having the Weyland Corporation first encounter the xenomorph in the early 21st century, it's obsession with the creatures in the subsequent films makes a little more sense. But I've seen too many Paul W. S. Anderson films to feel like I'm missing anything here. 

Juror # 2 (2024)

Clint Eastwood directing in his assured, lean but thoughtful style, the best moral quandry film I've seen in awhile. 'Juror # 2' stars Nicholas Hoult as an expectant father who fails in his attempts to get out of jury duty. Once empanald he realizes he may have inadvertently caused the death for which an innocent man is being prosecuted. He wants to do the right thing, but when his lawyer friend Keifer Sutherland advises him that if he steps forward he'll go to prison, Nicholas attempts to stear the jury, which starts out 10 - 2 in favor of conviction, towards an acquittal. Very well done, a solid cast including Zoey Deutch, J. K. Simmons, Toni Collette, Amy Aquino, Leslie Bibb, and Clint's daughter Francesca Eastwood as the dead woman. This movie feels like it's from 30 years ago, but in a good way.  ***1/2

The East (2013)

 Brit Marling co-wrote and stars in 'The East', in which she plays an employee of a private security firm who goes undercover to infiltrate an anarchist collective/ eco terrorist group. The time she spends with them weighs on her thinking and changes some presectives. This is a very smart movie and there were times when I was expecting the obvious, then it went in unexpected directions. I was really impressed. It's sociological character study meets 1970s style conspiracy thriller. ****

The Stone Creek Killer (2025)

 In a small Minnesota town two teenage girls go missing, a professional 'psychic' shows up to help, and the girls bodies a found ritualisticly displayed, the sheriff and the only two other officers on the force face what appears to be a serial killer. Filmed on location with a largely no name cast, in 10 days for $300,000, 'The Stone Creek Killer' is bland, "filler" "entertainment". It is also what comes from my mother, my sister and me selecting a movie based on what could get consensus as an acceptable choice. * 

I also watched the Irish mini-series 'The Dublin Murders' this trip and that was great. Watch that, skip this. 

Drowning Mona (2000)

 Mona Dearly (Bette Midler), the most hated resident of Verplanack, New York (a real small town, that was largely not happy with its portral in this movie) dies in what at first seems like an accident, but may have been murder. Sheriff Danny DeVito has no shortage of suspects, including Mona's son, her husband, the husband's mistress, and DeVito's perspective son in law, who had a buisness dispute with the woman. Great cast includes William Fitchner, Neve Campbell, Jamie Lee Curtis, Casey Afflick, and an SNL era Will Farrell as the town's sex addict funeral director. I found it quirky, likeable, unchallanging, and enjoyably small scale. **1/2

Sugar Cookies (1973)

 An arty, erotic crime thriller produced by a young Oliver Stone. Director George Shannon murders his star actress/ lover Lynn Lowery as part of an errotic game. His casting director, friend and sometimes lover Mary Woronov helps him to cover it up; but she then proceeds to hatch a plan to bring him down with the unwitting aid of a woman she finds who looks just like the lady he killed, also played by Lynn Lowery. Pretty nihilistic stuff, some social commentary, lots of boobs. **1/2

Paranoia (1969)

 Also known as 'Orgasmo', 'Paranoia' is a Gialo film which features actress Carrol Baker (still with us at 94) going nude as an American widow who travels to her late husband's Italin villia to recuperate after his death. While there her life is slowly taken over by step siblings who use their sexual wilds, to slowly turn her into a reclusive drunk, who they then try and manipulate into suicide. Pretty racey and decades ahead of its time in depicting bi-sexuality.  ***