I stumbled upon "The Shaft" while flipping through the cable channels. The TV guide had it listed as the 2000 Samuel L. Jackson version of "Shaft", which I had not yet seen. My first thought was that the film was off to a bad start by the mistitled "The Shaft"--it became clear rather soon that this was not the same film as I was led to believe. Jackson was nowhere in sight, instead replaced by an as-yet-unknown Naomi Watts.
And yet, I sat there for the entire film, cheering and laughing and applauding what I think must be one of the most absurd B-movies I've ever seen. The production values are surprisingly strong, with good cinematography, decent (to a point) visual effects, and some obviously tongue-in-cheek acting from the unusually stocked cast (Naomi Watts, Ron Perlman, Dan Hedaya?). I almost get the feeling that this film was shelved from theatrical release upon the 9/11 attacks (the screenplay contains some very eerie and prescient references to the not-yet-committed terrorist attacks on the WTC towers and Osama bin Laden).
However, with all that said, "The Shaft" is one insanely enjoyable ride through B-movie territory. What do you expect from a movie whose villain is a possessed self-aware elevator? To be sure, this is far superior to "The Mangler", another film about a killer machine gone haywire. This one never takes itself seriously, in spite of the rather frightening effects of people being decapitated (a most impressive effect) and others falling to their deaths. No one is spared: pregnant women, children, dogs. This elevator is one mean SOB.
Yet the filmmakers know exactly what tone to take, mixing dark comedy with the macabre to make what I can say is one of the more entertaining films I've seen in a while. From a masochistic German daycare worker (played riotously over the top) to an obnoxious blind man and his seeing-eye dog (whose ends are both laughable and sad simultaneously), this film does almost everything right--that is, up until the conclusion. The story takes an awkward turn into military cover-ups and corporate greed which drags the story into unnecessary territory. What should have been a fast-paced climax is more complicated than it should be and more serious than it demands.
That said, "The Shaft" is one of those movies which screams to be watched with friends, laughed at with a beer in one hand and a shot in the other. This is one odd-ball feature film, both very funny and shocking. Not a great film by any stretch of the imagination, but one that will stick in my memory for a while to come. Definitely worth a look if you are in the mood for what it is.
And yet, I sat there for the entire film, cheering and laughing and applauding what I think must be one of the most absurd B-movies I've ever seen. The production values are surprisingly strong, with good cinematography, decent (to a point) visual effects, and some obviously tongue-in-cheek acting from the unusually stocked cast (Naomi Watts, Ron Perlman, Dan Hedaya?). I almost get the feeling that this film was shelved from theatrical release upon the 9/11 attacks (the screenplay contains some very eerie and prescient references to the not-yet-committed terrorist attacks on the WTC towers and Osama bin Laden).
However, with all that said, "The Shaft" is one insanely enjoyable ride through B-movie territory. What do you expect from a movie whose villain is a possessed self-aware elevator? To be sure, this is far superior to "The Mangler", another film about a killer machine gone haywire. This one never takes itself seriously, in spite of the rather frightening effects of people being decapitated (a most impressive effect) and others falling to their deaths. No one is spared: pregnant women, children, dogs. This elevator is one mean SOB.
Yet the filmmakers know exactly what tone to take, mixing dark comedy with the macabre to make what I can say is one of the more entertaining films I've seen in a while. From a masochistic German daycare worker (played riotously over the top) to an obnoxious blind man and his seeing-eye dog (whose ends are both laughable and sad simultaneously), this film does almost everything right--that is, up until the conclusion. The story takes an awkward turn into military cover-ups and corporate greed which drags the story into unnecessary territory. What should have been a fast-paced climax is more complicated than it should be and more serious than it demands.
That said, "The Shaft" is one of those movies which screams to be watched with friends, laughed at with a beer in one hand and a shot in the other. This is one odd-ball feature film, both very funny and shocking. Not a great film by any stretch of the imagination, but one that will stick in my memory for a while to come. Definitely worth a look if you are in the mood for what it is.