While I'm toiling away on my Known Space 2: Fleet of Worlds post I wanted to take some time and talk about some movies I watched recently:

First up is Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.

Here's the deal, I - in general - don't like legacy sequels. I find that they rely far too heavily on nostalgia to be compelling on their own and that reliance on nostalgia ends up making them feel, for lack of a better word, bogus. Frequently they eschew good story writing, dialogue, interesting situations, what have you in favor of just hitting you with the nostalgia stick (remember that thing we did 20 years ago?! WE'RE DOING IT AGAIN!) and that just doesn't work for me, or I think most people.

Axel F kind of does that. The first Beverly Hills cop has the soundtrack blasting throughout because that's a part of the vibe of the movie, it's joyful and happy and loud. They double down on that in Axel F to the point where it starts feeling almost like an extended music video at points and yet...

I like it. I don't think it's amazing but one of the problems with legacy sequels is they tend to not be fun, even when they should be. Axel F despite it's faults is mostly a fun romp. The set pieces are dumb, but awesome. The music is good. Eddie Murphy actually seems happy which is wild considering the third Beverly Hills cop's movie attempt at being serious. Am I ever going to rewatch it? Probably not. Did I enjoy it? Yeah. This is easily the second best movie in the series, though in fairness that's because the bar for success is in the dirt.

Second: MaXXXine.

A different kind of sequel, the capstone to a horror trilogy that explored our cultural desire as Americans to be famous through the lens of different kinds of movies. While X was influenced by Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Pearl was an extremely dark distillation of The Wizard of Oz or Mary Poppins by way of '50s Hollywood melodramas, MaXXXine is instead inspired by sleazy LA flicks and Italian giallo. For me, this is great. I love a good giallo film, I love the wild technicolor set design, the killers clad in black and always in shadows, the suspense, the drama. It's good, heady stuff. Even bad giallo films are fun. For those that don't know giallo films are the cultural antecedent to slasher flicks but instead of being violent horror movies they tend more towards being mysteries or thrillers. Less gore and horror, more suspense and whodunnit.

So stylish pseudo-giallo, check. It's a movie set in the '80s and you can bet your ass the soundtrack slaps - Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Welcome to the Pleasuredome, Animotion - Obsession, Judas Priest - Prisoner of Your Eyes, New Order - Shellshock these are all certified bangers. The dialogue of Kevin Bacon and Giancarlo Esposito's characters is great - especially Bacon who just chews scenery as the worlds sleaziest private detective. Everyone looks fan-freaking-tastic.

As a capstone to this series about the lengths we'll go to for fame I think this was almost perfect. Pearl is always going to be a film the critics will like better, it's a bit more high minded, it has a stronger performance from Mia Goth (not that she's a slouch here), I think it has a bit more to say. X is a more classic horror film, it's a slasher through and through with an interesting villain and a great build up of tension. But MaXXXine is special, we see the final outcome of the struggle for fame and the consequences of being truly willing to do anything to achieve it and it is fabulous (and terrifying, natch). I loved it.

Last: Horizon - An American Saga

Let's get this out of the way first: I think Horizon as a package was maybe ill-conceived. A four movie series, where the first movie is three hours long, and doesn't have an ending. Shot in a close to 16:9 aspect ratio. And it's a western. They're slow. I love them but they're slow, they plod, they take their time. Horses are involved, we could even say they casually trot. This is why we love them... but this first movie is three hours of set up. You know what this is positively SCREAMING? I do: TV mini series. That's the general tenor of the online discourse and I agree. But.

But.

But.

I loved it. It's slow, sure, but things are happening. It's not boring. There are no less than five intertwined storylines and lots of character drama to go around. And it's interesting! Survivors of a massacre making a new life, the Civil War unfurling in the background, a family hunting down a woman who did them wrong (and you better believe we're rooting for her, not them), a wagon train travelling through treacherous terrain, a group of men looking for vengeance, and a horse trader stuck in the middle of this all. There's lots of juicy drama to enjoy. I am maybe less than happy at the initial depiction of American Indians but there is nuance there and I'm willing to see where this series goes with it and that's pretty good as far as western's go.

Visually, while I'm bummed out Costner didn't decide to use a more cinematic lens, the movie is lush, and gorgeous. Y'all, America is HAWT. Our country has got it going on, naturally speaking. Stark deserts, majestic mountains, lush forests, it's just a stunning looking film. The acting is great, from our villainous Sykes brothers: Jamie Campbell Bower as the taciturn Caleb Sykes and Jon Beavers as the cursed with a motor mouth like a runaway diesel engine Junior Sykes, Michael Rooker as a gruff sergeant in the Union army, Luke Wilson as a reluctant wagon train captain, Sienna Miller as an extremely capable mother and grieving widow.

I think it's clear, I like this movie. I have reservations about how it was released and some of the choices that go with that. But I think if you like westerns, or just big dramatic stories you should see it. And because of that I'm kind of sad. This is a new thing, an old story perhaps, but a new telling of it. It's not a sequel, it's not a remake, it's not just a reimagining of what came before and not only is it not doing great at the box office, which, again, I'm not shocked by. But people are gleefully ripping it apart and that just seems so sad to me. As of now part two was meant to come out in August of 2024 but has been taken off of release schedules due to poor ticket sales. I hope the series is finished and released, I'd like to see all of it, but I won't be surprised if we get a streaming release of part two and then nothing else. And that would be a loss for the diversity of our movies, I think.

Fin

Anyways, I watched these three movies in the last week and just wanted to write about them. I'll be seeing The Bikeriders and A Quiet Place: Day One soon and will likely write about those too.