Hey, Sergio here! This is the Heads-Up Reflection with a recap on the films of February and a look forward to the films that await us in the month of March.

Reflection on February’s Cinema Revue Lineup

February was a rough one for me. There was a lot of turmoil at my day job where I needed to take on more tasks. With this, it was hard for me to keep a decent schedule. I will start making up for it here. That and some struggles with sleep and the world going to hell around us. Yet, I’m getting a better handle on how to balance life itself. It’s hard, but if I give up on my writings now, that’s a failure on my part. The movies were here to make February a little brighter. For the most part anyway.

Medicine Man was completely lackluster. It was a drag and I admittedly disengaged with it as the film went on. Everything seemed right for it to be a compelling film or interesting. Yet, it was not in the slightest. Lorraine Bracco was not the best in this, but not to the point of getting a Razzie nomination. That’s rude as hell. Not even Connery could help with the film become elevated. It’s a misfire and that’s okay. Jon McTiernan did masterful work prior and went on to do Die Hard with a Vengeance which fuckin’ rules the school. That’s a strong recommendation to revisit if you want to have a fun weekend rental.

Another fun one is Wayne’s World. the best part about this rewatch is it is one of the few movies my partner was along for the ride. She had not seen it since she was a teenager and dug the revisit. This is one of those movies from childhood that I still adore. I made my admiration clear in the review, but everyone is on their A-game. I remember my uncle had the VHS for this but from a McDonald’s promotion. McDonald’s used to sell VHS tapes at a discount if you bought a value meal, but I was still fresh out of the womb during that time. If any of y’all have the Indiana Jones McDonald’s ones, hit me up.

Now the absolute dregs of a film with Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. This is not an enjoyable bad film. It’s a secondhand embarrassment shot and sold as a Stallone vehicle. I had to turn it off because it was so boring and not funny at all. It wasn’t offensive or anything, but it was a cavalcade of corny jokes and tired gags. That’s why it was best to forgo a traditional review and venture into the behind-the-scenes. the Schwarzenegger-Stallone war ended with such a whimper of a film. It’s hard not to picture Arnold in a screening room lighting up a stogie and laughing like Robert DeNiro in Cape Fear watching Stallone in a diaper. If he laughed, then the film did its job serving its purpose.

The final film of February was also the first 5 out of 5. I’m still thinking about The Mambo Kings. “Beautiful Maria of My Soul” has been stuck in my head for the last two days and has already been added to a playlist. With nearly all these films, I go into them having only read a simple plot synopsis and maybe one trailer. This one was only the plot, so I went in not knowing it would be a visual treat. The music is stellar and I’m still blown away by that stunt casting of Desi Arnaz, Jr. as his dad. This feels like a forgotten classic these days. I want to recommend it to everyone because what a delight. Heck, one doesn’t even have to like musicals to enjoy it.

Now, not all 5 out of 5 are equals. This gets a 5 out of 5 for being an entertaining drama in the musical genre it is in. It’s also in the scope of the ’92 Cinema Revue so far including films I’ve seen prior to this series. It achieved that in a manner that ruled and stood out. I wouldn’t compare this 5 out of 5 effort to a certain animal-centric film coming in June.

Here are February Ratings:

• Medicine Man – 1.5 out of 5
• Wayne’s World – 4.5 out of 5
• Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot – 0.5 out of 5
• The Mambo Kings – 5 out of 5

March 2022 Schedule

The third month of March should be one for the books. For one, three of the movies I’ve seen before, one of which gave me the idea for this series. These will be some fun revisits, but only one I had never seen at all before. And it’s the first one out the gate. Also, the Cinema Revue will move to Tuesday to allow for more time for me to write these reviews and keep up.

3/8: The Lawnmower Man

I saw a trailer for this last night to get the sense of the premise. I cannot say I’m looking forward to how Jeff Fahey portrays his character. Yet, I’m definitely here for Pierce Bronson looking fine as hell, wild science-fiction Stephen King, and early 90’s virtual reality. I actually have a VR headset and it’s nothing like that. Way more Beat Saber than virtual races on my end. This looks ridiculous. Ah crap, I just read the tagline. Dear God, whoever decided on that tagline is not seeing heaven.

3/15: My Cousin Vinny

Thank My Cousin Vinny for this written series. I’m not kidding. I had never seen it and went “What if I just watched a movie from 1992 every week?” and now we are here. I watched it prior to starting the series, so I cannot wait to share my thoughts with y’all. A quick spoiler but this film did exceed my expectations. Plus, Fred Gwynne was an eternal gem and he went out on a high note. I love that man.

3/22: Basic Instinct

Oh hell yes, 92 has a Verhoeven film. This movie I covered with my pal Patrick on a podcast we used to do called Film A Week and I might dig that up to listen to what I said. I remember it being a wild watch. I might watch it with my partner because this is the type of thriller we love. Thrillers are my jam. Erotic thrillers are wonderful revisits more so now thanks to how sexless modern cinema has become. Sharon Stone is also great. I’m excited to write about this one.

3/29: White Men Can’t Jump

It may be hard to remember when Wesley Snipes ruled the cinema. If Major League got him on notice, then New Jack City put him in the forefront. Yet, 1992’s White Men Can’t Jump and Passenger 57 sent him into the stratosphere. We get to review both this year with the one I’ve seen first. Wesley and Woody have phenomenal chemistry. Plus, Rosie Perez is a damn queen in this movie. There’s also mention of a famous gameshow that comes into play much like I Love Lucy does in The Mambo Kings. It’s one beautiful cameo in retrospect.

Oh right, Sequential Cinema is coming back with a bang!

MATRIX MADNESS – Every Thursday in March!

Every Matrix movie in March is going to be wild. EVERY SINGLE ONE. I love the first Matrix so much that I cannot wait to review the rest. Sequential Cinema is also moving to Thursday. Heck, I’m even seeing the Animatrix for the first time.

3/3: The Matrix

If you saw this originally posted in February, no you didn’t. Consider that a glitch in The Matrix. I finally have a better handle on this balancing act of writing and working. I adore this movie so much for the storytelling and the groundbreaking work it does. The trans allegory is also discussed as it is very much in the film’s blood. I quote another source that has a better outlook because as a Cis man, I cannot do that discussion justice in the slightest.

3/10: The Matrix Reloaded

Reloaded revisits the world of Zion and the battles against the machine. The freeway chase sequence is burnt into my brain to this day. I still do not know whatever the hell the Merovingian is supposed to be. Do not get me started on the Ghost twins. This movie is kind of bonkers in a good way.

3/17: The Animatrix

I have never seen The Animatrix. It’s going to be interesting to cover this one. I love covering anthology films because every segment leads to a mini-review. There are also nine segments, so this review may be longer than usual. Prayers to my hands both in typing and taking notes.

3/24: The Matrix Revolutions

This might be the one I’m least excited to go back and review. There’s so much potential in this one that it sort of falls flat and falters. I’ll give more thoughts when we come to it, but I can tell why the popularity dipped a bit after this was released only within a few months of Reloaded.

3/31: The Matrix Resurrections

The fact that this movie was polarizing upon release rules. Lana Wachowski was not messing about when bringing back these characters. This was also a great way to address studios’ obsessions with nostalgia, legacies as well as reboots and remakes. Plus, if you don’t fall in love with Jessica Henwick when all is said and done, then we cannot talk. I cannot wait to elaborate on why this movie rules.