Nemesis 5: The New Model (2017) Movie Review

Nemesis 5: The New Model is a 2017 action/sci-fi VOD movie directed by Z-Movie director Dustin Ferguson and written by Mike Reeb. It's the fifth and final feature film in the Nemesis film series created by Albert Pyun. It stars the usual cast from some other films by Ferguson like Schuylar Craig, Joelle Reeb, Mel Novak, Edwin Garcia, Daniel Joseph Stier and Dawna Lee Heising. However it does feature series regular Sue Price in a rather small role, a bodybuilder who played Alex Sinclair from part 2 onwards. This movie was probably made because Ferguson got the rights to the name of the series after watching the movies during the nineties and being a fan of them.

The Red Army Hammerheads have taken over Earth in the year 2077 and it's up to Ari Frost, who trained with Alex Rain, to rise up against the cyborgs and resist their conquest.

First thing you gotta realize is that this is a microbudget and very short Z-movie made strictly out of a fan's love for the original movies rather than a giant corporation trying to get a few bucks out of the few people who still remember the Nemesis movies, so you have to put up with some low production values, unpolished acting, rushed shooting and staging and some very rudimentary special effects but if you enjoy no-budget cinema this might be for you, particularly if you have some sort of nostalgia for the other Nemesis films. These conditions create a similar feel to the abstraction and surrealness of the original sequels this one takes a lot from but on a much meager budget.

Sue Price comes back for her role and you can tell it's been almost 20 years since the last flick but she still looks very good and has some fun (funny) moments that you can have a good time with. Other characters also come back or are added to continue the storyline of part 2 and 3 specifically, mostly ignoring the unrelated storyline from part four. I forgot to mention that Sue Price is about five feet, so she looks way shorter than the rest of the cast. In the other movies they played this off well enough that some people couldn't notice but as the series went on they stopped using lower angles or tricks to make her look bigger in front of the camera.

Visually there are some inspiring touches like the monochromatic color filters that give some flair and a distinguishable quality to the image, it's quite varied and well done so it never gets tiresome. The rest of the style is typical static camera and very few, if any, movements or flashy techniques. A lot of the movie doesn't really go anywhere and the plot meanders a bit too much from the central characters but I cant say I was bored while watching it even if not much impactful usually happens on Ferguson's films, this one is different in the sense that it has some conventional plot points and development for instance. Like most of his other movies Nemesis 5 is also about an hour and ten minutes long, so it never overstays its welcome.

Only recommended for those who are already familiar with the director and who know what they are getting into. Even if you are a Nemesis completist you might be bewildered by this one.

Nemesis 2: Nebula (1995) Movie Review

Nemesis 2: Nebula is a 1995 sci-fi action film written and directed by Albert Pyun. It's the second installment in the Nemesis film series and introduces the character of Alex Sinclair to the franchise, who will take the leading role from Alex Rain. She is played by bodybuilder and actress Sue Price, who would go on to reprise her role in the three following movies. In fact, this film and Nemesis 3 were shot back-to-back.

In a future overruned by mechanical overlords, the robots are about to kill a rebel woman who is with the human resistance, she sends a genetically-enhanced baby back to the 20th century. The child, named Alex Sinclair, ends up in an African village and grows up to become the best warrior around, impressing the chief of the tribe and defeating her fellow warriors in combat. A monstrous robotic entity known as Nebula hunts the now adult and fully formed Alex throughout the desert landscape. 

What I really love about this movie is probably how it becomes a very personal odyssey and achieves a very surreal and dream-like tone by having a fractured narrative that allows the film to either slow down on the ritualistic and contemplative moments of discovery and journey for the protagonist while also functioning as a very slick and well-crafted action movie on a very low budget. The typical drawbacks of a small production are present, like the fact that the film feels very empty due to the lack of locations and extras, making things seem very desolate. At first I thought it was a post-apocalyptic movie because of it but that's really only in the first scenes, the rest takes place in our era. However, this works in the film's favor as it accentuates the dream-like quality, abstracting time and place from normal and average real life, entering into a different realm it can play around in. 

The action is fast and with all of its perfectly cut and assembled sequences there's very little room for fat while making things still very legible. The places Pyun shoots in are very well handled and look very rich visually, specially with those old-school practical effects that reached a high point in the nineties even in poor productions. The stunts are also very professional and quite well executed, every fight has weight and every shootout has a very strong sense of place and rhythm. The visual effects such as slow motion and image manipulation to achieve the unreal visuals and movement are decently implemented and make the film more peculiar. It is expected for Pyun to be good at action, but I also liked how he worked with the actors, especially Sue Price, who gives us a very nice performance even if obviously most of her work has to rely on her physicality and body language, something she still accomplishes with more than just efficiency.

The sci-fi plot is rather thin and somewhat simplistic, but that also works in its favor since it helps to keep things streamlined and allows the film to move at a brisk pace without wasting much time on anything that isn't part of its thematic exploration or just the joy of constructing inventive action or using some great lighting and neat textures due to its splendid cinematography. This really does feel like someone with a B-movie budget trying to make the most out of it and making it work.

While these low budget science fiction B-movies are kind of an acquired taste, I gotta say that I do recommend this one to anyone who enjoys their nineties direct to video flicks and for those who enjoy beefy action heroines and wanna see more of them in media, which we should.  

Love Lies Bleeding (2024) Movie Review

Love Lies Bleeding is a neo noir crime drama released in 2024 and directed by Rose Glass. It stars the divisive Kristen Stewart and the action girl newcomer Katy O'Brian, alongside Ed Harris and Jana Malone.

Its trailer shocked and surprised people who thought that low budget indie crime thrillers were not being made anymore, at least not with enough refreshing elements to create enough noise and anticipation. The film also promised another relatively mainstream lesbian relationship that shatters conventions, Bound (1996) being the last previous film of its kind to do it to this scale. 

Did it deliver? Let's see.

In 1989, gym manager Lou (Stewart) meets beefy bombshell Jackie (O’Brian), who has been travelling in order to win a bodybuilding contest. They begin to date and their relationship and personal issues intertwine with the criminal organization run by Lou's father.

Unusually grungy, dirty and stylish neo-noir oddity, composed of corporeal obsession and savage impulses of sex and violence, love and hate. Love Lies Bleeding is a recent watchable outing in the alternative cinema field the Hollywood system has provided over the years, offering a very crude and somewhat delirious story that might puzzle some. Similar to Bound in many respects but increasing the extravagant elements of the story and adapting it for modern audiences.

Stewart actually works her way out of her typical blandness, to be fair, I think her method is fine in certain films and the disheveled, depressed, unemotional character she interprets here plays to her strengths. That's not to say she is dull, she delivers more nuanced emotions than in her usual roles, while still managing to stick to her understated style. Katy O’Brian has been a favorite of mine ever since I saw her work at Lucasfilm and Marvel, so I am glad they are able to use her more extensively here. Katy has great chemistry with Stewart and both are not only a cute couple but also create an interesting contrast in many ways.

Carefully controlled compositions, elaborate camera work, impressive production design and some good looking cinematography decorate this thrilling storyline and fluidly express the intended emotion/tone of each and every scene. The filmmaking is top notch by itself but the flaws are present and somewhat prominent. For example, the film drags during its middle part, it has the stereotypical and misguided representation of abusive relationships Hollywood uses (I can excuse it here because it's thematically important, speaking about family and people who you love but also hurt you) and the surreal scenes are somewhat useless or just odd without much weight to them overall.

It's a solid movie but hardly one that's unskippable. I think it's decently executed, the technique is more than competent and the premise was intriguing but it ran out of fuel and wasn't as hard hitting in it's emotional aspect or plot points/revelations as it should have been. A good time but it’s perhaps not a masterpiece. It also features female bodybuilder representation and lesbian themes done in a very organic manner.