Tag Archives: Shane Black

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) 20th Anniversary Review

Posted on April 9, 2025 by Sam S-P

https://secondcutpod.substack.com/p/kiss-kiss-bang-bang-2005-20th-anniversary SSP

Posted in Film, Film Review, Second Cut | Tagged Black Comedy, Film noir, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Michelle Monaghan, Mystery, Robert Downey Jr, Shane Black, Val Kilmer | Leave a comment

Review: The Predator (2018)

Posted on September 24, 2018 by Sam S-P

THE PREDATOR is frustrating for a number of reasons. That said, it’s also (damning with faint praise) the best Predator sequel we’ve had so far. The extraterrestrial Predator species returns to Earth in the form of a fleeing renegade carrying … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review | Tagged Action, Alien vs Predator, Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Munn, Predator, Sci-fi, Shane Black, Sterling K Brown, The Predator, Thomas Jayne, Thriller | Leave a comment

Review: The Happytime Murders (2018)

Posted on September 3, 2018 by Sam S-P

A thought kept coming to me while watching THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS: if not for the novelty of sweary Muppets, would this ever be considered good enough? I don’t know whether it’ll end up as one of the worst films of … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review | Tagged A Muppet Christmas Carol, Bill Barretta, Brian Henson, Comedy, Elizabeth Banks, Gough & Miller, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Maya Rudolph, Meet the Feebles, Melissa McCarthy, Muppet Treasure Island, Muppets Most Wanted, Peter Jackson, Shane Black, Shanghai Noon, The Happytime Murders, The Muppets | 1 Comment

Review: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

Posted on September 3, 2017 by Sam S-P

Nobody writes stupid as well as Shane Black. Much like his contemporary Aaron Sorkin, he doesn’t write people talking how people actually talk, but within his own distinct worlds his dialogue for bewildered characters crackles almost as much as Sorkin’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review | Tagged Black Comedy, Film noir, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Michelle Monaghan, Mystery, Robert Downey Jr, Shane Black, Sunset Boulevard, Val Kilmer | 1 Comment

Review: The Nice Guys (2016)

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Sam S-P

Watch THE NICE GUYS for a wonderfully shambolic Ryan Gosling teaming up with Russell Crowe playing a tank in a leather jacket. Remember it for Shane Black’s unique and sharply self-aware take on film noir. Black has been Hollywood’s go-to … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Review | Tagged Angourie Rice, Black Comedy, Chinatown, Drive, Film, Film noir, Get Carter, Half Nelson, Iron Man 3, Keith David, Kim Basinger, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Movies, Mystery, Russell Crowe, Ryan Gosling, Shane Black, The Long Goodbye, The Nice Guys, Ty Simpkins | Leave a comment

Top 10 Killer Henchmen (RIP Richard Kiel)

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Sam S-P

It really has been a tough year to be a film lover. The latest big screen icon to shuffle off his mortal coil is Richard Kiel, who died on Wednesday in hospital aged 74. A man with undeniable presence, Kiel … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Comment, Film Feature | Tagged Adrian Rayment, Braveheart, Brett Ratner, Carrie-Ann Moss, Chiaki Kuriyama, Elijah Wood, Film, Gareth Evans, Gert Fröbe, Goldfinger, Guillermo del Toro, Happy Hogan, Harold Sakata, Hellboy, Ian McKellen, Iron Man 3, James Badge Dale, James Bond, Jennifer Lawrence, John Hurt, Jon Favreau, Julie Estelle, Kill Bill Vol. 1, Ladislav Beran, Lawrence Fishburne, Liam Neeson, Lucy Liu, Mickey Rourke, Moonraker, Movies, Neil Rayment, Quentin Tarantino, Randall Duk Kim, Rebecca Romijn, Richard Kiel, Rob Roy, Roger Moore, Shane Black, Sin City, The Matrix Reloaded, The Raid 2, The Spy Who Loved Me, The Wachowskis, Tim Roth, Uma Thurman, Very Tri Yulisman, X-Men, X-Men 2, X-Men: The Last Stand | Leave a comment

Series Retrospective: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Posted on September 1, 2014 by Sam S-P

Ten films, six years, and two distinct phases later and Marvel are sitting pretty as kings of the proverbial movie castle. Try and cast yourself back to before Tony Stark strapped on his first scrappy suit of armour to escape … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Feature | Tagged Alan Taylor, Ang Lee, Anthony Mackie, Batman Begins, Ben Kingsley, Blockbuster, Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Christopher Eccleston, Christopher Nolan, Comedy, Don Cheadle, Drew Pearce, Edward Norton, Film, Flash Gordon, Game of Thrones, Guardians of the Galaxy, Guy Pearce, Hamlet, Hayley Atwell, Horror, Hugo Weaving, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3, James Bond, James Gunn, Jeff Bridges, Jon Favreau, Joss Whedon, Kat Dennings, Kenneth Branagh, Kevin Feige, Liv Tyler, Mark Ruffalo, Marvel, Mickey Rourke, Movies, Natalie Portman, Patrick Doyle, Robert Downey Jr, Sam Rockwell, Satire, Scarlett Johansson, Shane Black, Spider-Man, Star Wars, Superhero Movie, The Avengers, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Thor: The Dark World, Tim Roth, Tom Hiddleston, Tommy Lee Jones, Watchmen, William Hurt, X-Men | Leave a comment

The Obligatory End of the Year Top 10 (2013)

Posted on January 1, 2014 by Sam S-P

2013 has been a bit of a downbeat year for the film world, as we’ve lost a depressing number of talented individuals before their time – Roger Ebert, Richard Griffiths, James Gandolfini, Karen Black, Paul Walker. Peter O’Toole and Ray Harryhausen passed … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Feature | Tagged A Field in England, Alfonso Cuarón, Behind the Candelabra, Ben Kingsley, Ben Wheatley, Brad Pitt, Christopher Nolan, Cloud Atlas, Dan Aykroyd, Daniel Brϋhl, Daniel Day-Lewis, Danny Boyle, David Lynch, David Mitchell, David Strathairn, Drew Pearce, Drive, Edgar Wright, Film, Gravity, Guy Pearce, Inception, Iron Man 3, James Cameron, James Gandolfini, James Spader, Jim Rash, Karen Black, Kristin Scott Thomas, Liam James, Lincoln, Marc Forster, Matt Damon, Matthew Goode, Mia Wasikowska, Michael Douglas, Minority Report, Movies, Nat Faxon, Nicolas Winding Refn, Only God Forgives, Park Chan-wook, Paul Walker, Peter Jackson, Peter Morgan, Peter O'Toole, Ray Harryhausen, Reece Shearsmith, Richard Griffiths, Rob Lowe, Robert Downey Jr, Roger Ebert, Ron Howard, Rush, Ryan Gosling, Sandra Bullock, Shane Black, Simon Pegg, Steven Spielberg, Stoker, The Avengers, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Lord of the Rings, The Way Way Back, The World's End, Tolkien, Tom Tykwer, Trance, Vithaya Pansringarm, Wachowskis, World War Z | 1 Comment

Iron Man 3: Marvel’s Gambit Pays Off (In My Opinion)

Posted on September 23, 2013 by Sam S-P

The general consensus about whether Shane Black’s IRON MAN 3 is any good seems to be split about 50/50. Personally, I loved it – it’s a bold, pacey, sometimes dark and nearly always funny hero-in-crisis movie. I see it as … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Film Feature, Film Review | Tagged Drew Pearce, Film, Guy Pearce, Gwyneth Paltrow, Iron Man, Iron Man 3, James Bond, Joss Whedon, Kevin Feige, Kick-Ass, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Marvel, Movies, Plot Twist, Robert Downey Jr, Shane Black, Star Wars, Superhero, The Avengers, The Avengers: Age of Ultron, The Dark Knight, Watchmen, X2 | 7 Comments

Tag Archives: Shane Black

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) 20th Anniversary Review

Review: The Predator (2018)

Review: The Happytime Murders (2018)

Review: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

Review: The Nice Guys (2016)

Top 10 Killer Henchmen (RIP Richard Kiel)

Series Retrospective: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Iron Man 3: Marvel’s Gambit Pays Off (In My Opinion)

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