STAND ALONE(S)

ON THE SUBJECT OF THE FUTURE DC UNIVERSE/WARNER BROTHERS STAND ALONE VILLAIN FILMS

JEFF OF THE CINEFILES & UNFINISHED BUSINESS: HALL OF FAME: FILE #0050: LESS THAN ZERO (1987)

Directed By: Marek Kanievska 
Written By: Harley Payton 
Based on the novel written By: Bret Easton Ellis 
Cinematography By: Edward Lachman 
Editor: Peter E. Berger & Michael Tronick 


Cast: Andrew McCarthy, Jami Gertz, Robert Downey Jr. James Spader, Tony Bill, Michael Bowen, Nicholas Pryor, Donna Mitchell, Sarah Buxton, Lisanne Falk, Flea 

Clay, an eighteen-year-old freshman, comes back from his first term at Princeton to spend his Christmas vacation with his broken-up wealthy family in Los Angeles. His former girlfriend, Blair, is now involved with his ex-best-friend, Julian. She warns Clay that Julian needs help: he is using a lot of cocaine and has huge debts. What follows is a look at the youth culture of wealthy post adolescents in Beverly Hills with a strong anti-drug message. Apart from the setting and the names, the film has very little to do with Bret Easton Ellis's book by the same title on which it was based.

LOOKING FOR MR. GOODBAR (1977)

Written & Directed By: Richard Brooks 
Based On The Novel By: Judith Krasner 
Cinematography By: William A. Fraker 
Editor: George Grenville 

Cast: Daine Keaton, Richard Gere, William Atherton, Tuesday Weld, Richard Kiley, Brian Dennehy, Tom Berenger, LeVar Burton Julius Harris, Richard Bright 


A dedicated schoolteacher spends her nights cruising bars, looking for abusive men with whom she can engage in progressively violent sexual encounters.

I WANT YOU (1999)

Directed By: Michael Winterbottom 
Written By: Eoin McNamee 
Cinematography By: Slawomir Idziak 
Editor: Trevor Waite 


Cast: Rachel Weisz, Alessandro Nivola, Labina Mitevska, Luka Petrusic, Phylidia Law 



Helen is a young woman running a hairdressing salon; Bob is her boyfriend and local radio DJ; Honda is a mute kid who's secretly taping people's conversation and Smokey is Honda's sister who sings at local bar. New guy in town is the mysterious Martin, who shares some dark history with Helen and observes her from afar at first. Honda falls in love with Helen and starts taping her conversations with Bob, and that leads to reactivation of the Helen-Martin relationship

ATOMIC BLONDE (2017)

Directed By: David Leitch 
Written By: Kurt Johnstad 
Based on the Graphic Novel “THE COLDEST CITY” By: Antony Jonhston & Sam Hart Cinematography By: Jonathan Sela 
Editor: Elisabet Ronaldsdottir 

Cast: Charlize Theron, Sofia Boutella, James McAvoy, Toby Jones, John Goodman, Eddie Marsan, James Faulkner, Til Schweiger, Bill Skarsgard 


The crown jewel of Her Majesty's Secret Intelligence Service, Agent Lorraine Broughton is equal parts spycraft, sensuality and savagery, willing to deploy any of her skills to stay alive on her impossible mission. Sent alone into Berlin to deliver a priceless dossier out of the destabilized city, she partners with embedded station chief David Percival to navigate her way through the deadliest game of spies.

JOSIE AND THE PUSSYCATS (2001)

Written & Directed By: Deborah Kaplan & Harry Elfont 
Based on characters created by: Richard Goldwater, Dan DeCarlo & John L. Goldwater Cinematography By: Matthew Labitique 
Editor: Peter Teschner 


Cast: Rachael Leigh Cook, Rosario Dawson, Tara Reid, Alan Cumming, Parker Posey, Seth Green, Donald Faison, Paolo Constanzo, Missi Pyle, Breckin Meyer, Alexander Martin, Gabriel Mann 


For years, the record industries have inserted subliminal messages into music so that they can turn teenagers into brain dead zombies who do nothing but buy, buy, buy. And whenever the musician or band finds out the truth, the record company silences them to keep the truth from coming out. When the hot boy band DuJour discovers this, their manager, Wyatt Frame, under his evil, corrupt boss, Fiona, has the plane they are flying in crashed and him looking for a new band to use for their evil schemes. Enter Josie, the ditsy Melody, and the tough Valerie, from Josie and the Pussycats, a small band who wants to make it to the big time. When they are discovered by Wyatt, they give in and become big rock stars. But will they find out that they are just pawns for the record industry or will fame take them over?

MASTERMINDS (2016)

Directed By: Jared Hess 
Written By: Chris Bowman, Hubbel Palmer & Emily Spivey 
Cinematography By: Erik Wilson 
Editor: Keith Brachmann & David Rennie 

Cast: Zach Galifianakis, Kristen Wiig, Owen Wilson, Jason Sudekis, Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon, Jon Daly, Ken Marino, Ross Kimball, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Devin Ratray 

David Ghantt discovers the true meaning of adventure far beyond his wildest dreams. He is an uncomplicated man stuck in a monotonous life. Day in and day out he drives an armored vehicle, transporting millions of other people's money with no escape in sight. The only glimmer of excitement is his flirtatious work crush Kelly Campbell who soon lures him into the scheme of a lifetime. Along with a group of half-brained criminals led by Steve Chambers and an absurdly faulted heist plan, David manages the impossible and makes off with $17 million in cash...only problem is he foolishly hands the money over to this wild group of double crossers and has been set up to take the fall. With the bandits blowing the millions on lavish and ridiculous luxuries, they leave behind a glaring trail of evidence. Now on the lam and in over his head, David must dodge the authorities, evade a hilarious hit man, Mike McKinney, and try to turn the tables on the ones he trusted most

NASTY BABY (2015)

Written & Directed By: Sebastian Silva 
Cinematography By: Sergio Armstrong 
Editor: Sophia Subercaseaux 


Cast: Sebastian Silva, Kristin Wiig, Tunde Adebimpe, Reg E. Cathey, Mark Margolis, Alia Shawkat, Anthony Chilsom, Neal Huff, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Judy Marte 


A close-knit trio navigates the idea of creating life, while at the same time being confronted with a brutal scenario that causes them to take a life.

THE BAD BATCH (2017)

Written & Directed By: Ana Lily Amirpour 
Cinematography By: Lyle Vincent 
Editor: Alex O’Flinn 


Cast: Suki Waterhouse, Jason Momoa, Diego Luna, Yolonda Ross, Keanu Reeves, Jim Carrey, Giovanni Ribisi 

A love story set in a community of cannibals in a future dystopia. In a desert wasteland in Texas, a muscled cannibal breaks one important rule: don't play with your food.

THE SIMILARS (2015)

Written & Directed By: Issac Ezban 
Cinematography By: Isi Sarfati 
Editor: Oscar Figueroa 


Cast: Luis Alberti, Carmen Beato, Fernando Becceril, Humberto Busto, Cassandra Ciangherotti 

On the rainy night of October 2, 1968, eight characters waiting on a remote bus station for a bus heading to Mexico City start experiencing a strange phenomenon.

THE LURE (2015)

Directed By: Agnieszka Smoczynska 
Written By: Robert Bolesto 
Cinematography By: Jakub Kijowski 


Cast: Martz Mazurek, Michalina Olszanka, Kinga Preis, Andrzej Konopka, Jakub Gierszal, Magdalena Cielacka, Zygmunt Malanowicz, Marcin Kowalczyk 


One dark night, at water's edge, a family of musicians encounter aquatic sirens Silver and Golden. After assuring the family that they won't eat them up, the winsome sirens are recruited to join the Figs and Dates band at a neon-lit Warsaw dance club. When Silver becomes romantically entangled with beautiful blonde bassist Mietek, the more cunning Golden, who cannot escape her bloodthirsty nature, worries that her sister's relationship will doom their shared dream of swimming to a new life in America.

THE NIGHT OF SOMETHING STRANGE (2016)

Directed & Story By: Jonathan Straiton 
Written By: Jonathan Straiton, Ron Bonk & Mean Gene 
Cinematography By: Rex Femscared 
Editor: Brooklynn Taylor 


Cast: Trey Harrison, Rebecca C. Kasek, Nicola Fiore, Janey Mayson, Tarrance Taylor, Toni Anne Gamble, Brinke Stevens 


Five teenage friends set out for the beach on their Spring Break vacation. Good times are cut short when one of the group, Carrie, contracts a deadly sexual transmitted disease during a bathroom stop. When they stop for the night at an isolated motel, the real terror begins when the STD virus starts running rampant, turning those infected into the living dead. However, there's more going on at the motel than meets the eye. "Night of the STD's" was the original title. Which would more fit the film

THE MAN WITH TWO BRAINS (1983)

Directed By: Carl Reiner 
Written By: Steve Martin, George Gipe & Carl Reiner 
 Cinematography By: Michael Chapman 
Editor: Bud Molin 

Cast: Steve Martin, Kathleen Turner, David Warner, Paul Benedict, James Cromwell, Earl Boen, Jeffrey Combs, Jenny Gago, Stephanie Kramer 


Recently widowed Doctor Michael Hfuhruhurr, the world's greatest neurosurgeon, injures Dolores Benedict in a car accident. He operates on her and saves her life using a technique of his own invention: cranial screw-top brain entry. As Benedict recovers, Hfuhruhurr falls in love with her and they are soon married. However, Benedict is only interested in Hfuhruhurr's money and Hfuhruhurr still yearns for his previous wife. They travel to Vienna to attend a medical conference where Hfuhruhurr finally divorces Dolores, meets a mysterious Doctor Alfred Necessiter and becomes entangled in a series of murders committed by The Elevator Killer.

THE INCREDIBLE JESSICA JAMES (2017)

Written & Directed By: James C. Strouse 
Cinematography By: Sean McElwee 
Editor: Mollie Goldstein & Jesse Gordon 


Cast: Jessica Williams, Chris O’Dowd, Lakeith Stanfield, Noel Wells, Sarah Jones 


An aspiring playwright in New York strikes up a friendship with a guy while on the rebound from a break-up.

KIDNAP (2017)

Directed By: Luis Prieto 
Written By: Knate Lee 
Cinematography By: Flavio Martinez Labiano 
Editor: Avi Youabian 


Cast: Halle Berry, Lew Temple, Jason George, Sage Correa, Chris McGinn 



In the US, a child goes missing every 40 seconds. You never think it will happen to you. Until it does. Alone and scared, Karla Dyson is unwilling to leave the fate of her son's life in someone else's hands. When she catches a glimpse of the abductors speeding away, she decides to fight back. In a heart pounding race against time, Kate begins a high speed pursuit and will stop at nothing to save her son's life.

SPECTRE (2015)

Directed By: Sam Mendes 
Written By: John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade & Jez Butterworth 
Story By: John Logan, Neal Purvis & Robert Wade 
Based On Characters Created By: Ian Fleming 
Cinematography By: Hoyte Van Hoytema 
Editor: Lee Smith 


Cast: Daniel Craig, Lea Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Dave Bautista, Rory Kinnear, Andrew Scott, Monica Bellucci, Stephanie Sigman 

A cryptic message from Bond's past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization. While M battles political forces to keep the secret service alive, Bond peels back the layers of deceit to reveal the terrible truth behind SPECTRE.

THIEVES' HIGHWAY (1949)

Directed By: Jules Dassin 
Written & Based On The Novel By: A.I. Bezzerides 
Cinematography By: Norbert Brodine 
Editor: Nick DeMaggio 


Cast: Richard Conte, Valentina Cortese, Lee J. Cobb, Barbara Lawrence, Jack Oakie, Millard Mitchell, Jospeh Pevney 

A war-veteran-turned-truck driver attempts to avenge the crippling and robbing of his father at the hands of an amoral produce scofflaw. What I like about this film is that inherently it is a simple film. It's has a simple premise that has monkey wrench a thrown into plans that generally shock the audience as considering the time it came out. It has such a cynical heart and unpleasent scenes mixed in with some they are more jolly.

RUDDERLESS (2014)

Directed By: William H. Macy 
Written By: Casey Twenter, William H. Macy & Jeff Robinson 
Cinematography By: Eric Lin 
Editor: John Axelrad 
Music By: Eef Barzelay 


Cast: Billy Crudup, Anton Yelchin, Felicity Huffman, Laurence Fishburne, Selena Gomez, William H. Macy, Jamie Chung, Kate Micucci, Zoe Graham, Miles Heizer 


A grieving father in a downward spiral stumbles across a box of his recently deceased son's demo tapes and lyrics. Shocked by the discovery of this unknown talent, he forms a band in the hope of finding some catharsis.

THE BELKO EXPERIMENT (2017)

Directed by: Greg McLean 
Written By: James Gunn 
Cinematography by: Luis David Sansas 
Edited By; Julia Wong 


Cast: John Gallagher Jr., Adria Arjona, Tony Goldwyn, John C. McGinley, Melonie Diaz, Sean Gunn, Owain Yeoman, Josh Brenner, Michael Rooker, Abraham Benrubi, Brent Sexton, Gregg Henry, Rusty Schwimmer, James Earl 


In a twisted social experiment, eighty Americans are locked in their high-rise corporate office in Bogotá, Colombia, and ordered by an unknown voice coming from the company's intercom system to participate in a deadly game of kill or be killed.

MOVIES WATCHED IN JULY (2017)

ERIKA CHRISTENSEN in HOW TO ROB A BANK (2007)