Doomsday's Andrei Tarkovsky Love Fest

8. X-Men: Apocalypse
May 27




In what could be the final film in the retro throwback X-Men films, we're finally seeing one of the X-Mens' greatest nemeses played by the always awesome Oscar Isaac.  Both First Class and Days of Future Past were great entertainment and proof that superhero films can still live up to their reputation.  The ensemble is great, it looks to be raising the stakes for the characters and will hopefully be able to compare to the previous X-Men films.  

7. The Magnificent Seven
September 23


(NOT Denzel Washington)

Yes, we are currently living in the age of the superhero movie.  At the same time though whether you realize it we are living amongst a resurgence of the western.  More recently we've had the popular Django Unchained, The Revenant and Hateful Eight among other movies with star power like 3:10 to Yuma, The Proposition and the upcoming Jane Got A Gun.  Antoine Fuqua directs this remake of the 1960 classic, this time featuring Denzel Washington, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio and Peter Sarsgaard.  I could give or take Fuqua but with the cast and the source material this has the makings of a solid film, further proof that the western has made a comeback.

It will be a good indicator whether Mel Gibson's name really is box office poison nowadays. Sure he's been in a movie here and there since his 'events' but for the most part they haven't been very good anyways. Hopefully it does well enough that he can get the ball rolling on his other projects.

I cannot wait for The Disaster Artist. It has big shoes to fill to live up to The Room, the Citizen Kane of bad movies.

Definitely will be seeing both of those.

I'm worried about Hail Caesar, early February release date is not a great sign.

1. Bourne 5
July 29


The Jason Bourne movies in many ways are important films. They cemented Matt Damon as a Hollywood superstar who today is one of very few genuine movie stars who can still pull in a crowd. They helped usher a new type of realistic, gritty, serious action movie into the mainstream. Heck, they even made James Bond change things significantly so as not to be left in the dust. After three movies Jason Bourne was a powerhouse franchise. Even after The Bourne Legacy which tried unsuccessfully to carry on the franchise sans-Damon and director Paul Greengrass, Bourne always remained in the public eye. Now, after almost a decade since the last Matt Damon Bourne film, he's bringing the superspy back with Greengrass again at the helm. Although the franchise became somewhat formulaic towards the end, Damon promises to bring Bourne up to speed with current events and tech. If there's one movie I can say I'm really, truly excited for it's this.

Michael Mann is one of my favorite filmmakers, possibly my #1. Lately I rewatched Manhunter and noticed that The Keep has been released on Amazon Prime, the first time it’s available on any streaming service. I figured this might be a good time to rewatch his films, some of which I’ve seen several times (Heat, Collateral) and others once or twice (Ali, The Insider). This won’t count his Miami Vice series or LA Takedown which is essentially Heat.

Michael Mann, A Filmography

Thief (1981)





Michael Mann’s first feature film is considered a ‘neo-noir’ thriller. It features grounded, realistic characters, a grounded and focused script, little to no humor or levity and a standout 1980s Tangerine Dream score. In a way Thief is very much a product of its time yet is a movie way ahead of its time. Not many filmmakers have been able to match Mann’s ability to make serious, ‘adult’ crime movies. They have drama and romance but lack melodrama and clichés. They feature tough, hard criminals and anti-heroes but don’t fall into stereotypes. Thief very much embodies these elements that Mann hones and perfects over a career that covers an array of periods and genres, sometimes with results that could be best described as ‘miscalculated.’

One common theme that Mann puts into his scripts is highlighting the personal life of his key players. This very much humanizes his characters and makes you invested in almost every scene, every interaction, every decision. Entire scenes are spend showing James Caan’s ‘Frank’ as he tries to build a life for himself, moving away from his past and working toward something better (another common Mann theme). He’s surrounded by other characters that could have been so easy to mess up had they been developed by other, less focused filmmakers. Robert Prosky in his first film role plays a gangster who brings Frank into his fold for one job only to screw him over and force Frank’s violent hand. Prosky could have been a typical slimy mobster. He could have been some Italian caricature who tries to strong arm Frank in every scene. Instead he’s a sympathetic, almost charitable person who seems like he’s on Frank’s side even when he’s not. This helps you despise the guy that much more when his true colors come out. Willie Nelson’s ‘Okla’ is another character who brings out the humanity in Frank. Faced with a terminal disease and only a few months left behind bars, he implores Frank to get him out in time to take his last breath as a free man. It’s characters like these that help ground Thief and other Mann films, making them seem like movies that could very much exist in the real world.

Tangerine Dream’s score is another star of the film. Introduced in the first scene of the film where Frank is breaking into a vault to steal the load of diamonds inside, it perfectly sets the mood and period as a gritty, 80s crime thriller. Mann stated that his choice came down to either a techno-type score like the one Tangerine Dream provided or a jazz score to reflect the setting, either of which would have made for a very different movie. He certainly made the right choice here.

Thief wasn’t my first exposure to Michael Mann but it’s certainly near the top of my list. It’s stylish, moody and features great performances all-around. For anyone who isn’t that well versed in the works of Michael Mann this would be a great place to start.

The Keep (1983)




The Keep is Michael Mann's second feature film.  Wanting to steer away from another crime drama he chose to move in an entirely different direction by making a horror film, to date his only effort in the genre.  It's a good thing too because The Keep to say the least is a mess.  In every regard it doesn't quite know what it's doing and it seems like everyone involved has no idea which direction to take it.  

The Keep more or less is about a squad of German soldiers in World War II who occupy a small Romanian town.  Within the down is a 'keep' where the soldiers set up camp despite the warnings of some of the townsfolk.  While there they unleash a demon that starts killing them off...yet has to stay inside the keep.  Why they don't just camp somewhere else I do not know, probably because it would be too easy and there wouldn't be a movie.  Before long a murderous German commander (Gabriel Byrne) arrives to take charge of the situation and brings in an old scholar Dr. Cuza (Ian McKellan) and his daughter who might know what's going on.  Cuza, fresh from a concentration camp, quickly joins forces with the demon and attempts to assist in the destruction of the Germans and hopes to help the demon escape from the keep.  Unbeknownst to them however is that another spirt person thing (Scott Glenn) is on the way to prevent the demon from escaping and wreaking havoc on all mankind.

Based on a novel by the same name, The Keep was plagued with production problems.  Mann reportedly handed in a cut of the film that was 3 1/2 hours which the studio whittled down to about 100 minutes.  That should explain some of the reason why much of the film doesn't make a whole lot of sense and why Mann has all but disowned the film.  But even if there were a 3 1/2 hour cut though, it's still a very strange and forced blend of themes and techniques.  First, why adapt this book?  From the premise alone (German soldiers are attacked by a demon in a fortress) it sounds like it should be relegated to the 'If You Like Dungeons and Dragons And Dont' Want To Spend More Than $4' aisle at your local bookstore.  But book aside, it's one thing to have a horror movie where the protagonists/victims are a young family or a virginal high school student.  It's another thing completely to have the victims of the horror be Nazi soldiers.  You know, members of one of the most evil regimes in the history of the world?  It's hard to relate, just a little hard.  Mann also brings Tangerine Dream back into the studio to do their soundtrack which would have been great had it taken place in the 1980s.  Instead it feels so out of place in a period horror film that it takes out out of it completely.  It's also ripe with plot holes and strange, forced scenes specifically the ones regarding Scott Glenn, an immortal being who is tasked to ensure that the Keep stays safe but for some reason is waiting several miles away.  Why doesn't he just stay in the village?  And in what might be the most awkward sex scene ever recorded he sleeps with Dr. Cuza's daughter after about 3 lines between them which serves no purpose at all.  Was this scene the victim of studio tampering?  Perhaps we'll never know but ultimately we deal with what we're given and unfortunately we're given a jarbled mess of a film that probably should never have been made in the first place.  

The Keep is a movie that should only be watched if you're a film completist who is currently watching all of Michael Mann's films.  Otherwise there is on reason for you to waste your time with it.  It's strange, it doesn't make sense and you'll probably be disappointed that you watched it as soon as it's over.  I watched it so you don't have to so you can thank me later.

Shit, totally messes up my list.

I like Manhunter a lot. It's a really well-made thriller with a creepy tone, some cool soundtrack choices, interesting characters, and a great climax.

One of my favorite scores, and a very entertaining film.

I haven't actually watched through all of this yet but it seemed apropos: