Cursed

After getting into a car accident, orphaned siblings Ellie and Jimmy (played by Christina Ricci and Jesse Eisenberg) get attacked by a large animal. Jimmy swears it was a huge wolf, but everyone tries to convince him that it was probably just a bear or a cougar. By the next morning, the pair start to notice strange changes. Jimmy's getting stronger and Ellie is surprisingly attracted to the scent of blood. Is it a coincidence or have they been cursed with lycanthropy? Wes Craven's Cursed was apparently a nightmare to make, with endless reshoots thanks to the Weinsteins. At least three different versions of the movie were completed. The final version is decent but probably nowhere near the movie that Craven and Kevin Williamson had intended to make. The cast is great, with Ricci and Eisenberg being backed by Joshua Jackson, Judy Greer and Michael Rosenbaum. Plus cameos from Portia de Rossi, Shannon Elizabeth, Nick Offerman, Scott Baio, Craig Kilborn, Lance Bass and the band Bowling for Soup. 

Rating: 62%

(Image from Wikipedia)

Black Orchid

The TARDIS materializes on a railway platform in 1925. Soon after, the Doctor and his companions get whisked away to a country estate, where the Doctor gets to indulge in a spirited game of cricket. After winning the game, the Doctor and his friends get invited to Lord Cranleigh's home for a fancy dress party. But, it's not all cocktails and canapés, there's something sinister lurking inside Lord Cranleigh's home and it just might kill anyone who gets in its way. At just two parts, Black Orchid is a bit of an anomaly. It's a fairly low stakes story. There's no invasion to thwart or armageddon to prevent, it's really just a slightly horror tinged domestic mystery. That said, there's plenty to enjoy in Black Orchid. Nysaa turns out to be an exact duplicate of Lord Cranleigh's fiancée Ann. And, possibly for the first time, Tegan actually enjoys herself. Other than a few barbs directed at the Doctor at the beginning of the story, Tegan is all smiles throughout. The setting and the costumes (both the regular costumes and the fancy dress outfits) are all great. It's far from a perfect story, but it goes down easy. Like a nice cocktail in the bath.

Rating: Thank you, Lady Cranleigh, for a delightfully unexpected afternoon%

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin

aka The Master Killer

Even if the Wu-Tang Clan hadn't named their debut album after The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, the movie would still be on the Mount Rushmore of kung fu flicks. It's just that good. What's the plot of the movie? That's besides the point. The 36th Chamber of Shaolin is all about the training sequences. If your favorite part of a martial arts movie is the training montage, then The 36th Chamber of Shaolin is your Citizen Kane. And even though we only ever get to see ten of the promised chambers, no one goes away from this movie disappointed. 

Rating: 82%

(Image from Wikipedia)

Meatballs

If you don't think about it too hard, Meatballs is actually a beautiful movie. It's the story of an idyllic Summer filled with friendship, romance and personal development. Of course, once you get past that, Meatballs is also a story about hot dog eating contests, spying on girls and pantsing your rivals. Meatballs was also Bill Murray's breakout film and, as a word of warning, if you're not a fan of his early manic antics, then this is not the movie for you. While I would consider Meatballs to be a particularly raucous and ribald comedy, it's not nearly as raunchy as its sequels. In the grand pantheon on Summer camp cinema, it's a fairly chaste film. 

Rating: 69%

(Image from Wikipedia)