Category: Discussion Piece

The Main Movies to Watch in 2022

2022 is full of new movie releases. That’s why it’s hard to pick the right one to watch and leave some time for a website where you could try roulette wheel online or go for a workout. Cannot find a new movie for this evening? Then choose one of these ones.

Everything Everywhere All at Once

Evelyn, the laundry owner, lives in an unhappy marriage, struggles to communicate with her teenage daughter, and still can’t pay her taxes. One day, on the way to the taxman’s office, her husband Waymond suddenly changes his face and says something unbelievable. He claims that Evelyn is just one of many versions of herself in countless parallel universes. And that it is up to her to stop some evil that seeks to destroy all worlds. To do this, Evelyn must learn to communicate with other versions of herself and use their skills to fight the enemy.

The movie is built on contrasts. Hilariously silly scenes are juxtaposed with a poignant story about finding yourself in a “meaningless world.” It’s a kung fu action movie – but with melodrama in the vein of Wong Karwai. 

Red Rocket

Former porn actor Mickey shamefully returns to his hometown with empty pockets. A disgruntled mother-in-law and his wife, whom he left years ago, are waiting for him there. Mickey tries to start his life over, but falls in love with a high school girl and plots another escape.

Single-story shacks, dirty streets, non-Hollywood faces of the locals – Sean Baker captures the unfamiliar and charming look of poor America. In this world, you want to stay longer and meet all the wacky residents of the town. The guide through the universe of “white trash” is Mickey – a modern-day Mephistopheles. Except that he, on the contrary, seeks the good, but is always committing evil.

RRR

India, 1920. Officer Rama serves the British and seeks out a rebel named Bhim. A friendship develops between the men by chance, and they find themselves faced with a difficult choice: fight against each other or unite in a war against the British invaders.

RRR may well become for Indian cinema what “Parasites” has become for South Korean cinema. On the one hand, the movie fits into the stereotypes of national cinematography: there is a lot of singing, breaking the laws of physics and fiery dancing. But at the same time, RRR has a well-written story about a conflict of worldviews. And the choreography and inventiveness of the battle scenes would be the envy of any modern blockbuster.

Fresh

The main character Noah has been dating the charming bachelor Steve for a few weeks now. He is witty, handsome and extremely caring, so the girl agrees without hesitation to spend the weekend with him in the country house. Noa doesn’t know yet that her boyfriend is an ogre.

Fresh bumps into several genres at once: a touching melodrama, a horror about cannibals, a black romantic comedy and even a feminist revenge thriller. First and foremost, it’s an unusual and stylish statement about sexism and codependent relationships. Director Mimi Cave is not afraid to be ironic about the subject and to shock audiences with wild scenes of violence.

X

A porn film crew arrives at a ranch in the middle of nowhere. There they are hunted by an elderly couple.

X is shot and staged like a 1970s horror movie: crackling film, naive dialogue and an unbelievable level of violence by today’s standards.

Director Ty West flirted with retromans in his debut feature “House of the Devil,” but the new picture comes out more mature and understandable. On the one hand, we are faced with the usual nostalgic slasher. On the other hand, it’s a jeweler’s work that blends “low” culture with the fashionable techniques of the hipster studio “A24”.

Letterbox Breakdown – Keanu Reeves

Studying through the stats on Letterbox, it becomes fascinating to see who has become the most-watched star and whether they should be number one. I am going to be looking through the roles and see if the numbers add up to different roles and importance within the film. Exploring to see who has the most leading roles, supporting roles or just random cameos. Without further ado, let’s explore.

Keanu Reeves – 40 Films

Current Rank – 19th

Different Roles

First, I will look at the number of different roles the actor has portrayed.

Number of different roles – 33

Roles in more than one film – 3

• John Wick – 3
• The Matrix – 4
• Bill & Ted – 3

Roles In Film

Second, I will explore the position in the film the star portrayed.

Leading Roles – 23

Keanu Reeves has made himself an almighty career as a leading action man. Cornerstone franchise of ‘The Matrix’ and ‘John Wick’ have cemented him in the action genre. Keanu hasn’t ever been afraid of taking different roles with the incredibly creative ‘A Scanner Darkly’ being the biggest stand-out for him.

Sadly, with the few great movies, Keanu has done, there are a few bad ones ‘Siberia’, ‘Replicas’ and ‘Exposed’ are the biggest ones to name.

Co-Star – 5

It is rare that Keanu is part of a double act leading a movie. The ‘Bill & Ted’ franchise takes centre stage here, along with the immortal ‘Point Break’.

Supporting Roles – 9

When it comes to the supporting roles Keanu has taken, we find ourselves diving into a few early-career roles, ‘Parenthood’, ‘Dracula’. Or his more villainous roles, ‘Man of Tai Chi’, ‘The Neon Demon’ and ‘The Watcher’. Supporting immensely creative director Ana Lily Amirpour’s ‘The Bad Batch’ is also a huge plus

Cameos – 3

In recent years Keanu has started appearing in more cameo-like roles. The outstanding appearance as himself in ‘Always Be My Maybe’ is the one that you will remember the most.

The Missing Roles

This is a list of the biggest movies I haven’t yet seen from Keanu Reeves.

• My Own Private Idaho
• Something’s Gotta Give
• The Lake House
• Dangerous Liaisons

The date the stats were looked at – 6^th July 2022.

The House in Thir13en Ghosts

The House is made of glass with Latin phrases etched onto every wall and floor. This will prevent the ghosts from travelling past them, keeping them contained in the basement. Once the family enters the house, it triggers the machine that moves the walls and opens doors. Releasing the ghosts on the unsuspecting family. The line ‘How do you lose a family in a glass house’ has never felt more satisfying in a movie.

When it comes to set design, you can’t look past how brilliant is. What should be a safe home, turns into a nightmare situation. Having them carry a wall with Latin on it to get past ghosts is a smart idea. Changing how people can defend themselves against ghosts. It is fitting that two of the villainous figures meet their demise thanks to the walls or doors. Leaving the family in a position where they never touch killing anyone. This could have easily been a factor in the story, but not used that way.

The Director

Steve Beck – Steve Beck has an interesting career. Working on the visual effects for ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’, ‘The Abyss’ and ‘The Hunt for Red October’. Before stepping away from that, focusing on directing. Following Thir13en Ghosts with ‘Ghost Ship’. The two movies clearly show his skills in effects and design. While other sides of both movies have their weakness, the ascetics are brilliant.

Returning to the original question. Why do I think this is a modern-day Cult Classic?

When it comes to cult classics, we need to see how big the audience the movie brings. The movie did well at the box office, making $68.5 Million off a surprisingly big budget of $42 Million. Ranking it 60^th in the US Box Office for the year. Around ‘Zoolander’, ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’ and better than ‘Ali’.

When it comes to the visual look of the movie. The ghosts are memorable, most of which could even have their own spin-off movies. Let’s be honest, if it was released today, we would definitely have some spin-offs with these ghosts. The opening sequence shows of destructive the Juggernaut is. Certain ghosts have tragic backstories that could be explored. Sure, some are violent figures, but others have more to give. It would be like ‘The Conjuring Universe’ where the core stories are outstanding. While the spin-offs do the basics of horror without being offensive.

This is a movie that has plenty of horror fans out there. The actors who only appeared in this movie have been given a cult following because of the movie. The relentless pace at which the movie unfolds is a big draw. Everything about this movie knows where it stands in the horror world. It brings you in for an entertaining journey through a twisted mind.

Do you think Thir13en Ghosts is a cult classic?

Thir13en Ghosts – The Ghosts

The ghosts are the major plot point in the film. They are the keys to the bigger picture, each having its own unique appearance to strike up different levels of terror. They are not all evil ghosts, some are disturbing, while others are friendly. It is how you see them to what horrors they bring to you.

The First-Born Son

The First-Born Son has an arrow through his head, the child makes it easy for Bobby to be attracted to play with him. Can appear in any direction, just wanting to play. He is often further away. Never seemingly like a threat when he appears.

The Torso

The Torse is a terrifying figure, dismembered around the home. He will often be used for shock value, because of the image the torse presents. He is begging for help wanting the limbs of victims to come back to life.

The Bound Woman

The Bound Woman is one of the first ghosts we get a glimpse of. Calling for Bobby into the basement. She has been strangled, with maggots on her body, in her hair and over her cuts. Having a contorted movement towards the victims.

The Withered Lover

The Withered Lover is the one pure sole out of the ghosts in the home. The deceased wife of Arthur lost in fire six months before. She will act more as a guide, looking to protect her family from beyond the grave. Proving that not everything we meet in the home is going to be scary.

The Torn Prince

The Torn Prince has been waiting to swing away at his victims. He has been ripped apart, with his flesh hanging off his body and his baseball jacket covering up other parts. Swinging away, he gets the damage done to Dennis once released.

The Angry Princess

The Angry Princess is easily one of the most iconic ghost creations of the era. Naked and scarred, she lurks more than attacks. Involved in the first kill in the house. In what is a nice touch of revenge on the sexist comment she just received from the seedy lawyer. The bathroom scene, with the message of ‘I’m Sorry’ in a bloodstain on the floor shows the chaos she brings.

The Pilgrimess

The Pilgrimess is locked in a pillory making her a wide threat, that is desperate the scratch, claw and bite her victims. It would be easy to compare this ghost to The Jackal, in the era where they came from. It is one of the few ghosts we don’t get too much interaction with.

The Great Child & The Dire Mother

The pair come together, as the overweight adult still gets fed by his tiny mother. Wearing a diaper and eating baby food. It is almost like she never let him grow up. More of a disturbing image, rather than a bigger threat as ghosts.

The Hammer

The Hammer is the killer covered in spikes, almost like he has put them in himself after his kills. He will torment from behind the glass, creating jump scares to show how the glasses work for Maggie. A massive figure that would strike fear in anybody who comes across him. Every strike with his massive hammer creates a massive electrical flash moment.

The Jackal

The Jackal is one of the most ferocious ghosts. Ravaging anyone it manages to capture in a frenzied attack. One of the ghosts Dennis doesn’t want to get near. He will unleash a terrifying attack on Kathy, leaving her injured, screaming and terrified.

The Juggernaut

The Juggernaut is the last captured ghost, the 12^th ghost. A serial killer that never stopped killing after his death. Haunting a junkyard, he kills with ease, with an imposing presence. The character looks a lot like Frankenstein’s monster, only more menacing.

The director’s commentary has created deeper backstories for Thir13en Ghosts – The Ghosts. One that would have been interesting to learn more about, if this ever got remade.

In the final part, I will be looking at the other factors that could make this a cult classic

Thir13en Ghosts – The Modern Cult Classic – Part One – The Cast

Thir13en Ghosts was a remake of William Castle’s 1960, 13 Ghosts. It follows a family who inherits a home from a relative, only to find out it is haunted by 13 ghosts. The movie went on to receive terrible ratings from critics. MetaCritic score of 30 and Rotten Tomatoes score of 17% of 94 reviews. The audience was only a little kinder with a solid 48% and IMDB gets an average of 5.6 of 87,000.

The legendary Robert Ebert is quoted with this. ‘The Experience of watching the film is literally painful. It hurts the eyes and ears.’

So, why do I think this is a cult classic?

Thir13en Ghosts Cast

Tony Shalhoub – Arthur

Arthur is the grieving widow that is struggling to hold everything together for the family. He is doing his best, which is seeing him struggling to control his temper at times. The opportunity to have a new home from his uncle is too big of an opportunity to turn down. It would be best for his family, and he will have to fight for them.

Tony Shalhoub has always been a big character actor. In the aftermath of this movie, he went on to star in his biggest TV show, Monk. He has always had a strong career, and nothing changed for the star of the movie.

Shannon Elizabeth – Kathy

Kathy is the daughter of Arthur, taking up more responsibility around the home after her mother’s death. She is craving some more independence, which has become difficult for the whole family. It is hard to work out this character’s age because of Elizabeth playing the role. Her look makes her look like someone in their early twenties, but she could easily still be a teenager, with how she is treated at times.

Shannon at the time was fresh off ‘American Pie’ at that infamous scene and had recently done the parody Scream movie ‘Scary Movie’. She has moved away from too many roles, focusing more on her animal and environmental activist side of life now.

Embeth Davidtz – Kalina Oretzia

Kalina has been fighting against Cyrus throughout his whole hunt. She has lost her partner in the battle, leading to her looking to end his horrors tonight. Guiding Arthur through the home, she has a secret left to reveal. One that doesn’t seem to make as much sense in the bigger side of the movie.

Embeth has always had a strong career, from ‘Army of Darkness’ to ‘Bicentennial Man’. She did slow down after this movie, which seems like it was more to do with starting her family.

Matthew Lillard – Dennis Rafkin

Dennis has been working with Cyrus, helping him locate ghosts with his psychic abilities. Anything or anyone he touches can give away the story of their lives. He must take medication to make it through the day because of the side effects. Searching for his money, he ends up helping Arthur make it out of the house alive.

Matthew had already made a big impact in ‘Scream’ and a string of movies through the late 1990s. Ironically Lillard would go on to play Shaggy Rogers in the ‘Scooby-Doo’ movies and voice the iconic character once Casey Kasem retired. I say ironically because in 1985, ‘The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo’ aired, bringing everything full circle. Matthew continued to have a long career-changing how people saw him with the more mature performances on TV. With every Scream release, he gets plenty of attention too.

Rah Digga – Maggie Bess

Maggie is the live-in helper childminder for the youngest member of the house Bobby. She is nonsense when it comes to problems and has become close to Bobby after the tragedy the family suffered.

Sadly, the hip-hop star never seemed to return to the big screen until an upcoming project ‘Stars’. This is in post-production according to the IMDB.

F. Murray Abraham – Cyrus

Cyrus is the estranged uncle that has collected the twelve ghosts. He created the home for them to be contained in but died in the last hunt. It is his fortune, that the family thinks they are receiving. Only he has played the trick on the world, faking his death for his evil play.

F Murray Abraham is the Oscar winner for ‘Amadeus’ in 1985. Being a character actor, he has had an amazing career. Still going strong too. He was the biggest draw for the movie. The film uses his status to help unfold the surprise factor of his early death.

JR Bourne – Benjamin Moss

Benjamin is the lawyer that brings the family to the home. He knows the payday this will offer him, being the typical seedy lawyer type. Once he dumps the family in the home, he looks to make a quick exit via the money. Slipping past the ghosts, making sly comments about each one. Including the Angry Princess, who gets released, seeing try and back up his comments. He will have the biggest death in the film, as a door slices him clean in half.

JR Bourne has gone on to have a successful career, most recently sticking more to TV. he has always been a reliable actor for the type of role he takes on in this film.

Alec Roberts – Bobby

Bobby is the youngest member of the family. Put in the massive house, he can’t help but want to explore. He is drawn to the basement by the ghosts and his fascination with ghosts is even scarier. The rest of the adults spend most of the movie searching for him. As he gets a first-hand encounter with some of the scariest images of the ghosts, The Torse. Alec Roberts chose to step away from acting after this movie to focus on his education.

That completes the Thir13en Ghosts Cast. Part two will be looking at the ghosts