Revisiting Sam Raimi’s Old, Cheesy, Amazing Friendly Neighborhood ‘Spider-Man’

October 20, 2018

Marvel’s continuity shtick, one where various comic book characters and stories exist in one universe, used to be confined within comic book realms. In the early 2000s, there was no such universe and comic book movies were one-shot deals. Sequels were never planned and if a movie isn’t successful enough, then it joins the ranks … More Revisiting Sam Raimi’s Old, Cheesy, Amazing Friendly Neighborhood ‘Spider-Man’

Effect Desired None

October 11, 2018

Probably Not But Most Definitely had me confused. They could have easily given Cynthia Alexander a run for her money (not that record sales equates to big money in the early aughts, not that there were any significant record sales numbers to begin with), I just don’t get what the (vagina) monologues are for. What … More Effect Desired None

Watery, Domestic

October 8, 2018

You just can’t go in the studio toss out four “distinguishable, hummable songs” (Christgau) and call it an album. You can’t just invite your two buddies let one of them play bass and the other just basically do nothing and make them official members of the band afterwards. You can’t just have your drummer make … More Watery, Domestic

‘Banayad Whiskey’ & Other Funny Movie Scenes

September 15, 2018

Kingpin. If you’re familiar with the Insidious movies, you probably know who Lynn Shane is. She’s the psychic in the series and the main protagonist in the last movie. In Kingpin, she plays the landlady of Woody Harrelson’s character. And she’s responsible for the movie’s most horrifying scene. More horrifying than anything in the Insidious … More ‘Banayad Whiskey’ & Other Funny Movie Scenes

Before Jose Mari Chan Invades the Airwaves

September 9, 2018

Drafted this days before Jose Mari Chan starts invading the airwaves again. Well, it’s the time of the year again. And I could already smell the cool breeze even when it’s 32 deg C outside, imagine people “giving gifts exchanging cards” and believe that “Christmas is truly in their hearts.” Which means, it’s almost-but-not-yet-really near … More Before Jose Mari Chan Invades the Airwaves

Rivermaya Albums Ranked From Worst To Best

August 28, 2018

Rivermaya never got rejected by record labels because their songs weren’t “pop enough.” They never experienced selling tickets only so they could play in Club Dredd. If there’s anything naysayers had to say about Rivermaya, it’s that they were manufactured (they were the brainchild of Chito Roño and Liza Nakpil), they never toiled the underground … More Rivermaya Albums Ranked From Worst To Best

Debris (Sandwich, 2016)

July 28, 2018

Debris, Sandwich’s eighth LP, despite having “Kagulo” and “Outlaw,” is a little less than their previous outing—the one which they recorded live, in studio. “Kagulo”, easily Sandwich’s most recognizable hit since “Betamax,” could have been up there with the band’s best album openers—alongside “Sugod”, “Procastinator”, and “Cheese Factor Set to 9”—if only it isn’t the … More Debris (Sandwich, 2016)

Maselang Bahaghari: The 20 E-ssential Eraserheads Songs, Vol.1

July 22, 2018

I’ll let you in on a secret. The Eraserheads, the now defunct greatest local band in the land, is in the process of re-recording the songs from their ultra-celebrated but supposedly tinny-sounding first album Ultraelectromagneticpop!. Maybe I should drop “supposedly” in my last sentence, because that’s the very reason Ely Buendia wanted to re-do their … More Maselang Bahaghari: The 20 E-ssential Eraserheads Songs, Vol.1

Follow the Leader (Ciudad, 2012)

July 21, 2018

The trajectory Ciudad took from Happy Bear to Follow the Leader, isn’t quite slanted and enchanted turning into bright corners until terror twilight comes in. See, Pavement references Ella Fitzgerald, not Helmet; Ciudad, on the other hand, echoes Korn, the fathers-in-denial of the bastard sub-genre called Nu Metal. Maybe they’re more like The Dead Milkmen, who … More Follow the Leader (Ciudad, 2012)

‘Dredd’ Is A Punk-Rock Middle Finger To Ponderous Comic Book Movies

June 23, 2018

It’s a fucked-up world. And Mega-City One is a fucked-up place full of fucked-up criminals. And the Hall of Justice is the last bastion of order and maybe—peace. Or so they thought. This is the world where Judges exist, where Judge Dredd exists, where Judges roam the street and play judge, jury, and executioner. Armed … More ‘Dredd’ Is A Punk-Rock Middle Finger To Ponderous Comic Book Movies

‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Is A Perfectly Executed Action-RPG

June 16, 2018

Right after the opening salvo of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, in which we find Captain America and Agent Romanoff displaying their super-awesome fighting skills against a group of mercenaries in a SHIELD vessel, I wasn’t sure if I was in a movie house or if I just watched a perfectly executed tactical/brawler/action-RPG. Was it … More ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Is A Perfectly Executed Action-RPG

Deadpool 2’s X-Force Assemble Is Better Than Avenger’s Infinity War

June 2, 2018

There are no Infinity McGuffins in Deadpool 2, no superheroes fighting for the fate of the universe. What it does have is an unkillable motor-mouthed anti-hero, who clearly doesn’t want to get upstaged by other characters inside and outside his own movie. And that makes Deadpool 2, arguably, better than Infinity War. Or does it? … More Deadpool 2’s X-Force Assemble Is Better Than Avenger’s Infinity War

Thor’s New Hammer, Iron Man’s Gundam Suit and Other Great Things In ‘Avengers: Infinity War’

May 9, 2018

Avengers: Infinity War is far from perfect. But then it could have been worse, like The Matrix: Revolutions or Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. Good thing it’s more like Back to the Future II. Someone said it should have been a three-part movie. Well, dude’s got a point. Because the storytelling felt rushed. … More Thor’s New Hammer, Iron Man’s Gundam Suit and Other Great Things In ‘Avengers: Infinity War’