I've Totally Seen That Movie Before

  Total Recall (1990) Director:  Pauk Verhoeven Writers:  Phillip K. Dick (short story), Ronald Shusset (screenplay), Dan O'Bannon (screenplay), Gary Goldman (screenplay), Jon Povil (screen story) Cast:  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, Rachel Ticotin, Ronny Cox, Marshall Bell, Mel Johnson Jr., Michael Champion, Roy Brocksmith, Ray Baker, Dean Norris Synopsis: Construction worker Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger) is haunted by a recurring dream in which he travels to Mars. In an effort to make the dreams stop, and against the advice of his friends, he purchases a holiday from Rekall, a company that sell implanted memories. However, something goes awry during the procedure and Doug remembers that he's actually Howser, a secret agent fighting against Mars' tyrannical administrator Cohegaan (Cox). Quaid/Howser must now fend off repeated attempts to recapture him by Cohaagen's goon Richter (Ironside) and find his way back to Mars to uncover the truth o...

We Were Soldiers (2002) Director:  Randall Wallace Writers:  Harold G. Moore (book), Joseph Lee Galloway (book), Randall Wallace (screenplay) Cast:  Mel Gibson, Madeleine Stowe, Greg Kinnear, Sam Elliot, Chris Klein, Keri Russel, Barry Pepper, Duong Don, Ryan Hurst, Robert Bagnell, Jon Hamm, Clark Gregg Synopsis: The story of the first major engagement between U.S. forces and the N.V.A , when the 7th Cavalry Division fought against overwhelming odds in Vietnam's Ia Drag Valley. told from the perspective of the U.S. commander, Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Gibson), We Were Soldiers  follows the 7th Cav. from training in the use of helicopters as combat transports, all the way through the fateful battle and the aftermath. The film also follows the N.V.A. commander, Lt. Col. Nguyen Huu An as he tries to out-strategize Moore to claim victory for his vastly superior force.  First Impressions: I saw this one in the theaters with my group of friends. I've always been drawn to wa...

U-571 (2000) Director:  Johnathan Mostow Writers:  Johnathan Mostow (story), Sam Montgomery (screenplay) David Ayer (screenplay) Cast:  Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel, Jon Bon Jovi, David Keith, Thomas Kretschmann, Jake Weber, Jack Noseworthy, Tom Guiry, Will Estes, Terrence Carson, Erik Palladino Synopsis: In the midst of World War II, German U-boats have helped the Nazis control the shipping lanes between North America and Europe. The Nazis have the upper hand due to the effectiveness of the Enigma coding machine, which allows the U-boats to communicate freely with their commanders in Germany. The Allies are desperate to get a hold of working Enigma, and when a damaged U-boat sends out an SOS after an encounter with a British Destroyer, they jump on the opportunity. The U.S. Navy disguises the S-33, and old sub from the previous war, as a Nazi rescue sub to overtake the damaged German vessel and secure the Enigma, without Germany learning of its comprom...

Zombieland (2009) Director:  Ruben Fleischer  Writers:  Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick Cast:  Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, Abigail Breslin, Amber Heard, Bill Murray Synopsis: Columbus (Eisenberg) is a shy and awkward student attending college in Texas when the zombie apocalypse grinds the world to a halt. Despite lacking in physical gifts, he manages to survive Zombieland by following 30 simple rules. While trying to get back north to his family, Columbus joins up with Tallahassee (Harelson), a twinkie-loving zombie-killer making his way to Florida. They soon encounter two sisters, Wichita (Stone) and Little Rock (Breslin), who are on their way to California to visit the amusement park Pacific Playland which is rumored to be the only place left in America zombie-free. So naturally, end of the world hijinks ensue. First Impressions: This film came out at the beginning of the zombie-craze that hit during the mid-to-late-naughties, which we're just now comin...

Aliens (1986) Director: James Cameron Writers:  James Cameron (story and screenplay), David Giler (story), Walter Hill (story), Dan O'Bannon (characters), Ronald Shusset (characters) Cast:  Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henrikson, Bill Paxton, William Hope, Jenette Goldstein, Al Matthews, Mark Rolston *** This review is dedicated to my Aunt Kathryn, who helped foster my love for all things cinematic. She's not dying or anything (though she's getting up there in years), but I just wanted to take a moment to acknowledge her impact on my life. Thanks, Kath, I love ya, you old harpy! *** Synopsis: After floating aimlessly in space for more than half a century, Ellen Ripley's (Weaver) escape shuttle is discovered by a deep salvage team. She awakens on a space station near Earth, traumatized by the events on the Nostromo and facing legal troubles due to her actions taken to destroy the alien threat. She learns that the once unoccupied planet...

Alien (1979) Director:  Ridley Scott Writers:  Dan O'Bannon, Ronald Shusset Cast:  Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, Ian Holm, Yaphet Kotto Synopsis: On their way back home from deep space, the crew of the commercial towing ship Nostromo receive an unknown distress signal emanating from a nearby planet. Under obligation by the company to investigate the source of the transmission, the crew set down on the planet and discover a derelict spacecraft of unknown design. A team consisting of Captain Dallas (Skerritt), Kane (Hurt) and Lambert (Cartwright) are sent to search the downed vessel. During the investigation, Kane comes into contact with an alien lifeform that attaches itself to his face. Against the objections of the ship's third officer, Ripley (Weaver), science officer Ash (Holm) allows the search party back aboard the ship. Ash wants to learn more about this new lifeform, but before he has the opportunity, it escapes...

Shaun of the Dead (2004) Director:  Edgar Wright Writers:  Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright Cast:  Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis, Dylan Moran, Penelope Wilton, Peter Serafinowicz, Bill Nighy Synopsis: Electronics store employee Shaun (Pegg) has no direction in life and spends most of his time drinking at his favorite pub, The Winchester, or playing video games with his slacker best friend, Ed (Frost). After being dumped by his long-time girlfriend Liz (Ashfield), Shaun goes on a bender with Ed and wakes up to find that London has been overrun with the living dead. Shaun and Ed ignore instructions to stay in their home and set out into the zombie-infested streets to rescue Liz, her roommates David (Moran) and Dianne (Davis), as well as his mother, Barbara (Wilton). Will the down-on-his-luck Shaun emerge as a hero, or will he end up just making things worse? Zombie hijinks ensue. First Impressions: I came to this film quite by accident. I had read about it somew...