{"id":14920,"date":"2026-07-12T12:11:50","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T16:11:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/?p=14920"},"modified":"2026-07-12T12:12:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T16:12:19","slug":"weekly-movie-roundup-171","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/?p=14920","title":{"rendered":"Weekly Movie Roundup"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Last week, I watched 9 movies:<\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0050294\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-197x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Deadly Mantis\" width=\"197\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14918\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-197x300.jpg 197w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-671x1024.jpg 671w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-768x1172.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-1006x1536.jpg 1006w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-1342x2048.jpg 1342w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1-1-scaled.jpg 1677w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 197px) 100vw, 197px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0049201\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1-202x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Fastest Gun Alive\" width=\"202\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14919\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1-202x300.jpg 202w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1-690x1024.jpg 690w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1-768x1140.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1-1035x1536.jpg 1035w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1-1380x2048.jpg 1380w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2-1.jpg 1673w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 202px) 100vw, 202px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0990413\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3-1-203x300.jpg\" alt=\"Sugar\" width=\"203\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14921\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3-1-203x300.jpg 203w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3-1-692x1024.jpg 692w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3-1-768x1137.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3-1.jpg 972w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 203px) 100vw, 203px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<ul>\n<li>I&#8217;ll admit, I didn&#8217;t know <em>MST3K<\/em> had riffed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0050294\/\">The Deadly Mantis<\/a> when I first sat down to watch it, but nothing has ever made more sense to me than that. If 1954&#8217;s <em>Them!<\/em> is everything you want a 1950s sci-fi monster movie to be, then <em>The Deadly Mantis<\/em> is everything you expect a lousy <em>Them!<\/em> knockoff to be.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0049201\/\">The Fastest Gun Alive<\/a> takes a little too long to get properly started, with some scenes that don&#8217;t quite add to the whole, but it&#8217;s a decent morality play of a Western, with some nice performances, particularly a supporting turn by Jeanne Crain.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li>You think you know the beats that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0990413\/\">Sugar<\/a> is going to hit, then it slides past some with a curveball or two, and goes off in several unexpected directions. I&#8217;m not sure if it&#8217;s a home run, necessarily, but it&#8217;s a good day at the ballgame.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0051878\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4-1-197x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Long, Hot Summer\" width=\"197\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14922\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4-1-197x300.jpg 197w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4-1-672x1024.jpg 672w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4-1-768x1171.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4-1.jpg 787w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 197px) 100vw, 197px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0058715\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1-199x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Gospel According to St. Matthew\" width=\"199\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14923\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1-199x300.jpg 199w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1-678x1024.jpg 678w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1-768x1160.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1-1017x1536.jpg 1017w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1-1356x2048.jpg 1356w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/5-1.jpg 1510w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 199px) 100vw, 199px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0051786\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1-195x300.jpg\" alt=\"It! The Terror from Beyond Space\" width=\"195\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14924\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1-195x300.jpg 195w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1-664x1024.jpg 664w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1-768x1184.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1-996x1536.jpg 996w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1-1328x2048.jpg 1328w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6-1.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 195px) 100vw, 195px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0051878\/\">The Long, Hot Summer<\/a> feels like warmed-over Tennessee Williams. Most everyone involved circles around a good performance or two, but characters wash in and out, the film often doesn&#8217;t look very good, and none of it ever really comes together as much of anything.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0058715\/\">The Gospel According to St. Matthew<\/a> tells its story very simply, with no pomp or circumstance\u2014or even necessarily any <em>belief<\/em>\u2014and that&#8217;s what makes it all the more powerfully told.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li>You could look at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0051786\/\">It! The Terror from Beyond Space<\/a> as a precursor, or even possibly an inspiration, to the later <em>Alien<\/em>. But that makes this overblown TV episode feel like less of a snoozefest than it is.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0102724\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/7-197x300.jpg\" alt=\"Psycho IV\" width=\"197\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14925\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/7-197x300.jpg 197w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/7.jpg 592w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 197px) 100vw, 197px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt30343021\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"Song Sung Blue\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14926\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0060464\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-211x300.jpg\" alt=\"Ebirah, Horror of the Deep\" width=\"211\" height=\"300\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-14927\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-211x300.jpg 211w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-722x1024.jpg 722w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-768x1089.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-1083x1536.jpg 1083w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-1444x2048.jpg 1444w, https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9-scaled.jpg 1805w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 211px) 100vw, 211px\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0102724\/\">Psycho IV: The Beginning<\/a> is probably a better-made movie than <em>Psycho III<\/em>, but I liked it a lot less, and I didn&#8217;t even like <em>Psycho III<\/em> very much.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt30343021\/\">Song Sung Blue<\/a> is largely sweet and charming, with good performances by the two leads.<\/li>\n<ul><\/ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0060464\/\">Ebirah, Horror of the Deep<\/a> was also apparently riffed by <em>MST3K<\/em> too\u2014though under its American title, <em>Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster<\/em>. And, honestly, that makes a whole lot of sense too. The movie could use a whole lot more Godzilla and sea monster, a less complicated and cobbled-together script, and more fun.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last week, I watched 9 movies: I&#8217;ll admit, I didn&#8217;t know MST3K had riffed The Deadly Mantis when I first sat down to watch it, but nothing has ever made more sense to me than that. If 1954&#8217;s Them! is everything you want a 1950s sci-fi monster movie to be, then The Deadly Mantis is &#8230; <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/?p=14920\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14920"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14920"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14920\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14929,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14920\/revisions\/14929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unreality.net\/weblog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}