Movie Review: E.T. (1982)

I can already hear some people mumbling “This isn’t horror, why the hell are you putting it in the Month of Spooks?”. And here’s my reasoning: It’s set during Halloween, which technically makes it a Halloween movie, which means that it works for Month of Spooks. Loophole, motherfuckers. So let’s talk about an alien non-invasion.

Ladies and gentlemen… “E.T.”!

The story follows a boy named Elliott (Henry Thomas) as he one day finds and befriend and alien that he goes on to call E.T. And so we follow Elliott as he tries to keep his new alien friend hidden while trying to find away to contact E.T’s species. So now we have our family friendly alien non-invasion plot. And even when I put my nostalgia aside, I fucking love this plot. It’s a fun twist on an alien coming down to earth, usually we get aliens coming down to murder all of us, but this is about a friendly little guy. And the people behind the scenes of this manage to make it endlessly engaging, fun, charming, and just plain entertaining. It’s perfectly paced while still telling an emotionally investing story.

The characters in this are fun, interesting, and overall entertaining. First up we have young Henry Thomas as Elliott, the child at the center of the story. He has a bit of a troubled life, with his parents getting separated, among other things. But he’s still a good kid, and it’s fun to see his evolution after he meets E.T. And Thomas is great in the role. Next we have Robert MacNaughton as Michael, Elliott’s older brother. He’s kind of a jerk, but he does get some decent development throughout the movie. And MacNaughton is really good in the role. Next we have a very young Drew Barrymore as Gertie, Elliott’s young sister. Not only is she absolutely adorable, but she’s also a fun character that adds a little extra charm to it all. And Barrymore is really good in the role. We also have Dee Wallace as Elliott’s mother. She’s under a lot of stress, and Elliott’s misadventures certainly isn’t helping things out. But she’s still a loving and caring mother. And Wallace is great in the role. Yeah, ’tis a well acted movie.

The score for the movie was of course composed by the one and only John Williams. And as one would expect from that legend, the score here is fucking fantastic. The theme is as memorable as all his other ones, and the rest of the score of course has that magical, whimsical, and emotional quality that Mr. Williams is so damn good at. I don’t need to say more, you know how good this score is.

Written by Melissa Mathison (R.I.P), this movie was directed by Steven Spielberg, and of course he did an excellent job with the direction. He has a way of creating magic and excitement from the smallest of scenes. It also helps that the writing here too is absolutely delightful. But seriously, Spielberg could direct a movie of someone reading the phone book and it would be charming. Probably starring Tom Hanks. Anyway, not only does he capture the childlike wonder of Elliott discovering this alien, he also manages to create some eerie and outright disturbing moments throughout. And the cinematography by Allen Daviau is absolutely breathtaking.

This movie has been very well received. On Rotten Tomatoes it has a 98% positive rating and a “Fresh” certification. On Metacritic it has a score of 91/100. Roger Ebert gave it 4/4 stars and put it on his “Great Movies” list. And on imdb.com it has a score of 7,9/10. The movie won 4 Oscars in the categories of Best sound, Best visual effects, Best sound editing, and Best original score. IT was also nominated for an additional 5 Oscars in the categories of Best picture, Best director, Best original screenplay, Best cinematography, and Best film editing.

So yeah, “E.T.” is considered a classic for a reason. It has a great plot, really good characters, great performances, fantastic music, and fantastic directing/cinematography. Time for my final score. *Ahem*. My final score for “E.T.” is a 9,88/10. Which means that if (of course) gets the “SEAL OF APPROVAL!”.

My review of “E.T.” is now completed.

My blog, my Month of Spooks, my rules.

Childhood Movie Blogathon: Markus’ Picks

GUYS… Hello. Today I am doing something a bit different. In this here post I will do a list (sort of). You see, about a month ago I decided to sign up to take part in a “Blogathon”, held by my friend (sort of) who hosts the blog http://letsgotothemovies7.com/ (Sidenote: Check it out, it is awesome!). Well she decided to start this Blogathon where anyone could take part and share some of their favorite childhood movies and maybe see if they hold up to this day. And now I here you asking “But Markus, why not do singular reviews of the movies first and THEN compile a list?”. Well my reasoning is that this is my list and that means I can do whatever the hell I want.

Rule #1: Same as always: My list, no bitching allowed.
Rule #2: These are movies I watched as a kid, if there is a movie you think could have been added to the list then it was probably not a movie that I watched back then.
Rule #3: This list will be in no particular order, I will just put my picks here and tell you if I think it holds up or not.
Rule #4: As I am writing this, I am eating watermelon and will announce every time I have finished a slice.

So here we go… Some of My Favorite Childhood Movies.

Number 1: Space Jam (1996)

Plot: Michael Jordan agrees to help the Looney Tunes play a basketball game vs. alien slavers to determine their freedom.

Undoubtably a silly and somewhat stupid premise, but at the same time it is somewhat intriguing. This is a movie I watched more than I probably should’ve during my childhood. But I did it because I had fun with it, “Space Jam” was a really fun movie. One of the main reasons I actually watched it was because I am a big fan of “Looney Tunes”. Anytime an episode was on TV, I had to see it, I loved them that much. Even now I love them. So seeing them back then in a movie about basketball really got my attention. So for the first time in many years, I put the tape in the VHS player and watched the movie.

What held up: The seamless blend of animation and live action, a fair amount of the humor, Bill Murray in a supporting role, camera work.

What didn’t hold up: Michael Jordan’s acting, the Harlem Globetrotters’ acting, some of the humor, the “sexy” bunny.

Overall: 7/10.

First watermelon slice is eaten.

Number 2: Spy Kids (2001).

Plot: The children of secret-agent parents must save them from danger.

Intriguing, kids who must become secret agents to save their parents, who I must remind you are highly trained agents(!), who get captured by Alan Cumming with a strange bathrobe. Okay fine, if you go by that strange aspect of the story, it is still an interesting idea for a child-friendly action movie. I remember first watching this in our (mine and my parents’) old apartment together with my mom and her friend (who also happened to be my babysitter). I remember loving it and being just wowed by it. So let’s pop in the VHS and see if it still works.

What holds up: The mystery and twist, the action scenes (surprisingly), the two main kids and their chemistry, some of the humor, the parents, Danny Fuckin’ Trejo, The slice of watermelon I just ate.

What didn’t hold up: Some of the acting, a lot of the CGI, the small amount of gross-out stuff, some of the humor.

Overall: 6/10. However, this slice of watermelon gets a 9/10.

Number 3: The Lion King (1994)

Plot: Tricked into thinking that he caused the death of his father, a lion cub flees and abandons his destiny as the future king.

Sooo, “The Lion King”. I kind of remember when I first saw this movie, I remember I was 4 and wow, that was 14 years ago! But still, I remember being scared half to death by this movie when I first saw it, so it took another year or so for me to watch it again. Then it took about 13 years for me to watch it again because I am stupid like that. But now… does it still work? I know this watermelon does.

What holds up: The heartfelt and timeless plot, the voice acting, the music, the animation, the villain (Go, Jeremy Irons!), the humor, the drama.

What didn’t hold up: I could seriously not find a single thing here.

Overall: 10/10.

Number 4: Scooby-Doo (2002)

Plot: After an acrimonious break up, the Mystery Inc. gang are individually brought to an island resort to investigate strange goings on.

I have been a huge fan of “Scooby-Doo” my entire life, as in the character Scooby-Doo. I watched several “Scooby-Doo” cartoons as a kid, I could not get enough of Scooby and the gang. Then a live action movie came out. I was of course intrigued as a kid and yes, I was also excited about it. So my parents bought it when it came out on VHS and we watched it. And now it was time to watch it again. Right after this final slice of watermelon.

What holds up: Some of the references to the old cartoons, Matthew Lillard as Shaggy, the music.

What didn’t hold up: The plot, most of the acting, the script, the visual effects, the fact that Scrappy-Doo is in this movie, the humor.

Overall: 3/10.

Number 5: Star Wars (1977).

Plot: Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a wookiee and two droids to save the universe from the Empire’s world-destroying battle-station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the evil Darth Vader.

What? I watched this as a kid, I have a right to have it on my list.

What holds up: It’s fucking “Star Wars”.

What didn’t hold up: Seriously, this is fucking “Star Wars”, it’s perfect!

Overall: 10/10.

Number 6: Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone (2001).

Plot: Rescued from the outrageous neglect of his aunt and uncle, a young boy with a great destiny proves his worth while attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

That’s right, I am going with the original british name for it! Because that is what it actually is supposed to be named and because it sounds more cool and mystical. “Sorcerer’s Stone”… stupid.

What holds up: The plot, the visual effects, a lot of the acting, the costume design, the music.

What didn’t hold up: Some of the acting (the child actors only).

Overall: 9/10.

Number 7: Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991).

Plot: A cyborg, identical to the one who failed to kill Sarah Connor, must now protect her young son, John Connor, from a more advanced cyborg, made out of liquid metal.

Yeah… didn’t expect to see “T2” on this list, did you? Well let me give you my backstory on this movie. I was in 5th or 6th grade (so about 11 or 12 years old) when my friend/classmate walked up to me and started talking about this great movie he have seen called “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”. I was intrigued. So like a few days later when I was just skimming through the TV channels, I ended up on a channel that actually played “T2”. So I watched it. And I liked it. A few years later it was on TV again and I decided to watch it because I didn’t remember that much of it. And i liked it. Then I watched it again like two months ago… so did it hold up?

What holds up: The surprisingly deep plot, the deep characters, the great acting, the great writing, the visual effects, the spectacular action scenes, the suspense, the excellent debut of Robert Patrick.

What didn’t hold up: Couldn’t find anything. Not even in the director’s cut of the movie.

Overall: 10/10.

So those were some of my favorite childhood movies and how they (in my opinion) held up. And again, please go check out http://letsgotothemovies7.com/ because that blog is awesome! Also, don’t forget to tell her that Markus said hi!

Have a good one!

My Favorite Scenes: Scooby Doo on Zombie Island – Terror Time

Hello my friends! I am here and I am ready to share one of my favorite scenes again. And this time it is from the animated movie “Scooby Doo on Zombie Island”. I remember watching it a lot of times as a kid and loving it. I have always been a big fan of Scooby Doo. I would even dare to say the live action movies are two of my guilty pleasures. But today those are not on the menu, it is one of the best Scooby Doo movies ever made. In the scene we are looking at we see the gang get chased around by zombies while the awesome song “Terror Time” by Skycycle plays in the background. This scene is awesome and it has gotten me pumped to see the movie again some time soon.
Enjoy!