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MaXXXine (2024)
Third place in the trilogy.
Writer and Director Ti West is back with another X film, continuing Mia Goth's bloodlust from Pearl and X. Here she's Maxine Minx, a 1980s porn actor looking to make the move into the mainstream. Double denim and ZZ Top, it's unashamedly stylish in West's heavy on the style way. 80s American is much like today's, with puritanical rhetoric from the evangelist right and unhinged danger from the disenfranchised proles. There's a satanic serial killer 'The Nightstalker' on the loose in LA... but it's okay as the victims aren't the clean cut type that the Reagan era wants to protect. It's more of a slow burn, there's plenty of sleaze in the set up, but this doesn't have the same immediacy of its predecessors. Don't worry though, horror and gore is coming and it'll be no surprise to learn that Maxine is not to be trifled with. The nods to her past though (and the fun flashback threads to Pearl and X) are to catch up with her. I've always found VHS home recordings a disturbing medium and this leans heavy on the jump cuts and suggested horror. It wanders a little too close to torture porn in places, but this is West's thing. The story isn't lacking, but he does rely a lot on visually arresting shock scenes. I know Goth isn't everyone's cup of tea either, but for my money she's every bit the powerhouse star. When Maxine's world is interrupted by John Labat (Kevin Bacon), her deadeye stare and calm delivery is an easy match for anything that Bacon's southern styled menace can bring. He's a P. I. delivering a message, a cog, a pawn. Maxine, well she's the apex predator. Not even Giancarlo Esposito in a wig can upstage her... although he's still pretty dangerous. Liz Bender (Elizabeth Debicki) sees Maxine's promise. She's the director on the horror film that Maxine hopes is going to be her big break. It's all very meta and self referential and might make the cinephile in you roll your eyes, but it's still a compelling plot of the hunter and the hunted. I didn't enjoy it as much as what's gone before and there doesn't feel any need for more with this ever-shifting character, I doubt this will be the end though. It's a screwed up story for a screwed up country. One with plenty of bloodlust and I doubt West will pass up the chance to twist this further.
Late Night with the Devil (2023)
An absolute joy!
1970s America is a time of fear and violence a voiceover here informs us (not much changed there then). "Television beams the horror into our living rooms". 'Mr Midnight' Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) is the host of a nightly show called Night Owls. Beloved by the tabloids and the nation, he's more than his clean cut image suggests. A member of The Grove, a secret boys club, he hopes it will give him the power to rise to the top of the TV ratings. Beset by personal tragedy, this darkly stylish thriller hits the gas from minute one, as we're shown "the live TV event that shocked the nation". As set ups go it's gripping, fun and very promising. Halloween night 1977 with a guest list that leans into the spooky, Jack valiantly attempts to boost his ratings. It's brilliantly crafted. Like a feature length episode of Inside No.9 with a theatrical budget. As far as praise goes, trust me you can't get much higher. Little hints of unrest are signposted, luring you in to what on the surface feels like a fun kitsch thriller. Jack's sidekick Gus (Rhys Auteri) is the cameraman's favourite cutaway and as things start to go off script, the look of panic in his eyes are felt in the viewers chilling bones. From the clairvoyant Christou (Fayssal Bazzi) to the paranormal skeptic Carmichael (Ian Bliss), the tension builds and builds, until we get to satanic cults... and Lilly (Ingrid Torelli), a young girl who nearly steals the show. With dramatic theatrics both on and off the stage, it's genuinely freaky. Sure you can be dismissive of the tropes, but when they're leant into so brilliantly, you've got to tip your hat. The gore is in the right places. The story is simple, but very effective. The acting is rock solid throughout. It's paced brilliantly and it doesn't over stay its welcome. A fun and engaging modern horror thriller, I'm going to have to see what else writer/director brothers Cameron and Colin Caines have come up with. This is an absolute joy!
The Beach (2000)
Will a rewatch help?
This might seem like an odd film to revisit, but it popped up and I thought why not. I read the book years ago and loved it, but do recall this being a disappointment. It can't be that bad can it? I'm hoping that not having read the book in nearly 30 years will have cleared my mind and I'll be more able to appreciate Danny Boyle's adaptation. Richard (a young Leonardo DiCaprio) is looking for adventure away from societal conformity in Thailand, where else, it's the 90s after all. Not that there's any danger of forgetting that with its intro of choppy edits and thumping electro score. There he meets Daffy (Robert Carlyle) who tells him of The Island (with a beach). We're capitalising that to indicate its importance. It's said to be an idyllic perfect utopia, unspoilt and damn hard to find. Just what every backpacker is looking for right. This fateful meeting sets Richard and his inner monologue in search of the secret destination. Along with Françoise (Virginie Ledoyen) and Étienne (Guillaume Canet) thanks to a map left behind by the criminally underused Daffy. Richard likes Françoise, but three's a crowd and this early tension telegraphs that although The Island may be perfect, what you bring to it isn't. It's really not a bad start. The story of course is solid, the acting inoffensive and The Island (filmed on location in Thailand) is indeed beautiful... once you've navigated safety past the local drug cartel. There's a deep inner darkness to this tale and portraying that weight is difficult. The Island's community is a collection of travellers from all corners, well Europe and America, and is lead by Sal (Tilda Swinton). The trio are welcomed in, but Richard has already bitten off more than he can chew. DiCaprio is pretty good, not great but his character has limited depth, which is sort of the point, so it's not a challenge. Swinton is good too, not yet the powerhouse she'd become, but all the indications are here. Everyone else is functional. Although shout out to Lars Arentz-Hansen as Bugs, Sals less than friendly boyfriend. He sees the threat that the newcomers bring. They've seen instability before in Daffy and it's happening again. What should be a relaxing new life is slowly turning into an increasingly tense nightmare as Richard's previous choices catch up with him and his strength of character is tested. It's a dark a damning comment on how selfish people can be. The set up is fun, but as Richard loses his mind, it does lose its way and decends into an unsatisfactory mess, with no redeeming character and a conclusion that feels both rushed and incomplete. In short it's frustrating. So yes, it is pretty bad. I might read the book again though.
Gojira -1.0 (2023)
Definitive!
Do we need another Godzilla movie? No of course not, but that's not stopped people before and I doubt it'll stop more in the future. So the question should probably be, is this a good Godzilla movie? Where I feel others have failed in the past is with too much extra fluff around what's essentially a monster movie or by contrast solely relying on special effects of a giant dinosaur-like monster and little else. In case you've lived under a rock. That's who Godzilla is. A dinosaur reminent nuclear bi-product of WWII bombing and that's where we are, at the tail end of the war in Japan with a kamikaze pilot who didn't fulfil his mission. There's little waiting around, with Godzilla attacking a small island off the coast in the opening scene, but this really is merely a tease. Koichi (Ryunosuke Kamiki) returns to Tokyo to find it levelled and his family gone. It looks cinematically bleak, think Saving Private Ryan levels of destruction. Everyone struggling to get by in a ruined city as time goes by. Koichi finds himself in embroiled in a new family unit with Noriko (Minami Hamabe) and a baby she's rescued from her dying mother, but he's haunted by the war, his cowardice, PTSD induced nightmares... and the monster. It sounds dark doesn't it, but it plays to an air of hope, of rebuilding, of second chances, but that early tease is soon to return, bigger and more brutal. The battle scenes with boats and Godzilla in the water are spectacular, with an amusing amount of Jaws homages. Godzilla looks fantastic. Gnarly but with an authentic Japanese aesthetic. It's heavy on explosions and is genuinely gripping, but just wait until it reaches land! Koichi finds all his nightmares coming back to life. It balances his story well with the action and both are handled really well, action and reflection, but it does feel overly long. Two hours is a little indulgent and it could easily lose half an hour. That said, I've forgotten any detail of every other Godzilla film I've ever watched, but this one has some meat on its bones. Yes it's fantastic, but that's the point. What it also has is some authentic jeopardy with palpable emotional connections and that's what makes it tick. Can Koichi beat the monster, can he fulfill his destiny? So, is it a good Godzilla movie? For me, yes it is, perhaps one of if not the best. Does that mean there's no need for any more? Again for me, yes... but that's unlikely isn't it.
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
Bonkers.
This was the first film I watched in the cinema with my now wife. We had no idea going in what it was about. Let's be honest, it's not a great date movie. Written and starring Quentin Tarantino, maybe that should've been a clue, I was expecting blood, just not in this context. Before the monumental twist at the half way point, this is a down, dusty and dirty road movie in the uncultured southern states. Texas to be precise. There are no nice characters, but there are antiheroes. One being Seth (George Clooney), who along with his psychotic brother Richie (Tarrantino) is on the run, robbing, killing...and kidnapping. Which is where we meet Jacob (Harvey Keitel) and his kids Kate (Juliette Lewis) and Scott. He's a pastor who's lost faith, which is bad timing considering Seth wants his motor-home as a means of escaping to Mexico and specifically their rendezvous at The Titty Twister. A roadside bar that wouldn't get planning permission in anywhere other than this film. It's full of drunken scumbags ogling naked dancers who turn out to be... vampires! From Dusk Til Dawn is a batshit romp, a comedic b-movie horror that oddly turns out to be more than a sum of its parts. There's nothing particularly clever about it and most of the characters are ridiculous, but it's undeniably fun. Honestly though, as we arrive at the debauched establishment for the second half finale, I'm surprised we didn't leave the cinema. Any promise of cinematic nuance goes right out the window. Even Salma Hayek is reduced to little more than a sex object, which considering how great she is it's absolutely criminal. On the positive side though we're introduced to Frost (Fred Williamson) and Sex Machine (Tom Savini). The names should indicate the tone here, but they're more bad boys like Seth and soon to be on their side as Seth picks a fight and the whole bar including Razor (Danny Trejo) turn into the undead. Cue nearly an hour of OTT comic splatter. Heavy on the splatter, heavier on the comedy and that's why this gets away with being so daft. It doesn't take itself seriously and neither should any viewer. Forget about the plot holes, the cheesy dialogue. Embrace the rock n roll soundtrack and the badass insanity.
Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
A feast for the eyes.
I read the book recently. It's very good. It did take me a while to stop reading every word without Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder narrating in my head. Their accents in this, as noted by John Grant are pretty atrocious, but get past that quickly and this really is a very enjoyable. Dracula, a medieval Romanian Prince/Warlord is thrown into despair after his bride commits suicide thinking him too to be dead. Believing her doomed for eternity for her act, he renounces god and embraces all that is dark and evil. As set ups go, it's pretty gripping. Dracula (Gary Oldman) looks great in his youthful battle armour. In fact he really steals the show throughout in the costume department. Centuries later in 19th century London, Dracula is still alive. He's not actually in London yet, that's pretty much his goal for the entire story, to move house, but Renfield (Tom Waits, what a voice), a fly consuming resident of the local asylum senses him. How you might ask. Well incase you've been living under a rock and didn't know... Dracula or Count Dracula to give him his full title, is a vampire! Renfield was to assist Dracula as his estate agent (I don't remember this from the book, but it works). His downfall leaves Jonathan Harker (Reeves) to be drafted in. He's to go to Transylvania to meet and help the Count with the move. To say his portrayal of the young English gent is wooden is an understatement, it's even worse than his fiance Mina (Ryder), who at least seems to be having some fun with it. It's certainly not lacking in style. The sets, the costume. Everything is painted with gothic fairytale menace. It's in every sense of the word, wonderful. The first glimpse of the vampiric legend is as spectacular as could be hoped. Pale skin, blood red robes and an improbable hairstyle in a cold hostile looking castle. It's not long before he sees a photo of Harkers fiancé and spots the eerie resemblace to his lost bride. Harker doesn't know it yet (he's not the sharpest tool) but Dracula has plans for him. The cast fills out with a few extras, Mina's playful rich friend Lucy (Sadie Frost) and a host of her amorous suitors including Richard E. Grant and Cary Elwes. They're largely superfluous, other than Jack (Grant), a morphine loving doctor who runs the asylum hosting Renfield. Their stories are better fleshed out in the book, but here they're simple padding until we get back to the scenes with Dracula driving Harker mad, trapped in his castle, writing letters to Mina, that provide plenty of folklore exposition. Fun as it is, it could quickly decend into style over content, but Van Helsing (Anthony Hopkins) helps. He arrives to help Lucy who's been bitten by our vampire. That said, maybe what makes this so watchable is the style. It really does look wonderful. Yes some of the FX are a bit 90s, but they fit perfectly. Don't get me wrong, the bizarre love triangle with Dracula inserting himself into Harker's & Mina's life is fun, but not as much as the titans Hopkins & Oldham going head to head in their roles of good and evil. It's pretty faithful to the text, but stands on its own for its pure visual strength. Overblown, it's everything it should be.
Noroi (2005)
Gripping!
I've no idea what to expect here, but I've a feeling it's going to give me nightmares. Kobayoshi (Jin Muraki) is a journalist and documentarian dealing in the supernatural. As we learn of his disappearance, his latest film is suggested to have the answers. With lo-fi production and hand held consumer grade cameras, it looks like a found footage film, blurred and desaturated, but looks can be deceiving. It quickly gives you the chills as Kobayoshi investigates strange noises, coming from a strange house, occupied by an aggressive woman, Junko Ishii (Tomono Kuga) and her eerie child. No CG, no tricks, it really draws you in, instantly invested in everyone we meet, it's all the more disarming as the curse strikes. Thats the name of Kobayoshi's last film, The Curse. Blink and you'll miss something. It really keeps you on your toes. Chopping from Kobayoshi and his cameraman, to TV shows, to deleted scenes of TV shows, to live recordings of screenings of those deleted scenes. It feels like you're being dragged into something genuinely dark and disturbing. It takes some work, but it's absolutely brilliant. It must've taken some work to make too, I can't imagine what the edit must've been like. That said, it looks after its audience, you won't be left behind. Psychics, shadowy mysterious figures, strange repeating patterns, weird noises, missing children, pigeons! It's a fun puzzle built around a fractured cast, that inexplicably interlinks in a remarkably satisfying way. Not so much what you'd call a modern horror, it's light on gore. It's spooky though and doesn't pull any punches, making you believe in the cult darkness that unfolds. Although there's a lot of location stuff, there's an awful lot of detail throughout. It may all look natural, but this has been crafted brilliantly. The camera feels authentic. The acting, not like acting at all. Everyone is utterly convincing. It's chilling and captivating. Completely immersive as the death toll rises and the mystery unfolds. Well worth a watch.
Event Horizon (1997)
Solid space thriller.
Continuing a theme of rewatching old horror films, this one perhaps wouldn't spring to many people's minds. Is it old? Well it's not old old, but 1997 is now nearly 30 years ago, which is scary in itself and right from the get go it dates itself slightly, stating colonies on the moon in 2015 and Mars mining in 2032. We're going to be set in space in case you'd not realised. In 2040 the Event Horizon research vessel has lost contact somewhere around Neptune. Now 7 years on we join a decent cast floating in space. Weir (Sam Neill) is a doctor, not really the caring medical kind, being sent on a search and rescue mission to find Event Horizon with a crew of rough and ready spacedogs lead by Miller (Laurence Fishburne). It's a familiar set up, lots of personalities that are clearly going to clash as things start to get brutal and they will get brutal. Before that though, there's plenty of deep space sci-fi eerieness, compounded by a typically 90s ominous score (stick around for The Prodigy on the end credits). Weir has nightmare visions of his wife and the crew are cranky and downbeat. Brimming with positivity it is not. It rides the narrative well though, once introductions are made, we learn that a signal has been detected from the missing vessel, that it turns out is a secret government ship capable of inter-dimentional space travel... no wonder it's lost. Granted it's packed with tropes, but it's very entertaining, at least to begin with. Weir plays the crew the signal he received, thought to be from Event Horizon, a garbled sounding nightmare of screams and a muffled voice whispering "Save me" in Latin. They're going to wish they stayed at home. Weir is clearly holding something back and his power struggle with Miller intensifies as they get deeper into space, find Event Horizon and board her without knowing where she may have been for nearly a decade. Wherever it's been, it wasn't a friendly place. Some of the FX look dated, but it's still pretty stylish and on the whole looks really good, well until all hell breaks loose! Things explode, literally, starting a countdown for survival. That's not the pull here though. It's the mystery that makes this tick. "I need an explanation" states Miller with that deadpan Fishburne delivery. Man made black holes bending space time, it's intentionally theoretical, you have to strap in and enjoy the ride. Sean Pertwee as Smith and Jason Isaacs as DJ are both great, but there's no fluff. Even Richard T. Jones as the comedic Cooper stays perfectly on track, in what's largely a decent into madness. On release this was pitched on its FX and its sets, a big blockbuster movie and in that regard it fails really, but revisiting it, there's more to it. Yes it's gets a bit weird, but it's a strength if you lean into it. Don't worry about the cast losing their minds, let yours go with it. It's a tale of loss, of hope, redemption and viscous psychological punishment with plenty of gore, plenty of style. A simple idea well executed. It's not much of a horror though and the dialogue is a bit ropey, but it's a good enough thriller and Sam Neill plays psychotic pretty well. Does it lose its way? Yes a little, but still well worth the revisit.
Cronos (1992)
Not what I was expecting.
I've never seen Cronos before, I've heard of it but only by name and have absolutely no clue what it's about. If you're in a similar boat, although there's no spoilers here, I'd stop reading now, go watch it, then come back. In the 15th Century, an alchemist devises The Cronos Device. A clockwork gadget that holds the secret to eternal life. After missing for a hundred years, it's found hidden in a statue by a grandfatherly antique dealer called Jesus (Federico Luppi). He wasn't looking for it, but Angel de la Guardia (Ron Perlman) is. He's not that bothered truthfully, thinks it's all nonsense, but his uncle, who just drops the Angel (Claudio Brook) is a believer. It's Jesus though that it latches on to and soon he finds himself at its gruesome mercy. Guillermo del Toro is a master of blending the fantastical with reality and Cronos is a great example, with Jesus thrust into a dark vampiric plot underpinned with thrilling supernatural horror. One that he's not equipped for and one that really surprises this viewer. Just when you think you've got a handle on it, things shift as we dig in deeper. For all its grotesqueness though, it's cut through with humour. Faced with a new reality, Jesus must lean into the darker corners of his situation to try reclaim what's truly important in his life. It looks wonderful, every character is perfect and it deftly finds its way to its crushing finale.
Braindead (1992)
Wow, so much blood!!
A New Zealand zoo fella (theres probably an official term, but it's not important for this film), swipes a cursed Rat-Monkey from some angry locals in Sumatra. He'd have been better off staying home. He doesn't make it back... but the monkey does! Back in 50s Wellington we meet the bumbling Lionel (Timothy Balme) and his oppressive mother. She's as dislikable as he is likeable. Parquita (Diana Peñalver) thinks so too, she has a soft spot Lionel and on their first date they head to... the zoo! Where we get to see the infamous Rat-Monkey for the first time. It's a stop motion gore fest, a little taster for what's to come. What is to come you might ask? Zombies that's what! For that's what happens to anyone bitten by the Rat-Monkey and first on the menu is mother! Despite all the gore and goo, it's more of a comedy than anything else, albeit a very horrific one. Do not eat while you're watching this. You'll either throw up or choke through laughing. There's no CGI like Jackson's later films, this is all in camera. It's quite a visceral experience. The aim is clear, how can we make the most extreme but accessible zombie comedy ever. The answer is Braindead. Mystic Grandmothers, lecherous Uncles, Kung Fu Priests & Nazi Vets, it's one of the most insane films I've ever seen! Poor Lionel tries to hold it all together as the body count increases and the amount of puss and slime threatens to take over the screen. It's beyond nasty and if it weren't for the slap stick comedy, I don't think I'd sleep for days. I'm not sure I've ever seen so much fake blood! It's quite spectacular. It makes goriest film you've seen look a kids movie!!
The People Under the Stairs (1991)
Oddly plausible and still packs a punch.
Fool (Brandon Quintin Adams) is a young boy with a sick mother and a single parent older sister, living in an apartment block that the owner, The Man (Everett McGill) wants to tear down for something more profitable. Fool is under the impression that if he can find some money, he can stave off eviction. His neighbourhood is full of drugs and pimps, like Leroy (Ving Rhames). Rumour has it the big bad landlord has gold in his house and Leroy has a plan involving Fool to get it. Personally I'd stay clear. The Man and his sister (Wendy Robie) are nuts. Their long suffering daughter Alice (A. J. Langer) can verify this... as I suspect can the people trapped in the walls of their house. It's proper disturbing, but also pretty funny, largely down to the double act of Leroy and Fool, who soon find themselves in The Man's house, full with its myriad of devilish secrets. With every creak and every door slowly opened, you're begging for them to get out, before they get too deep. It's very American, but plays well to it. The scary thing being the plausibility of it all. In fact I believe Wes Craven was inspired to write this by true events, which really is scary. Trapped in a house of horrors with two yahoo nutcases. Fool soon finds that his only hope may come from the unlikeliest of places. Truth be told it could be a lot more effective if it dialled things back a little. Things get a bit too comic book caricatured in places, but it still works. It's like Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets Home Alone, which could be amazing... but it's just really good. Horrors work best when they have purpose and meaning, The People Under the Stairs has plenty of both.
Pet Sematary (1989)
In King we trust.
You'd assume you're in safe hands with a film based on a Stephen King book and not only that but adapted for the screen by him too. Louis (Dale Midkiff) and Rachel (Denise Crosby), arrive in town with their daughter Ellie (Blaze Berdahl) and her baby brother Gage (Miko Hughes). It's a small idyllic town, safe you'd think, but it's quickly apparent that it's not. For starters their neighbour is Herman Munster! Although to be clear, Fred Gwynne here is Jud Crandall, a local with blue denim dungarees and a straw hat. He knows something about the mysterious path behind the families new house. It leads of course to the Pet Sematary, a local requirement due to the busy road that runs right by their house, populated by fast moving trucks, that well... kill pets. Louis is the new doctor in town and finds himself thrown in at the deep end with something bigger than just dead pets. Granted it seems a bit simple on the surface, but as Louis discovers with Jud's help that there's more to his new home, so do we. Disturbing waking nightmares, reincarnation, some gnarly gore, some very upsetting deaths and the aforementioned Mr King making a cameo. It keeps you on your toes! It's not at all simple, there's plenty to unpack around the subject of death and this deftly broaches it from several angles. Sometimes with The Ramones playing, what more could you want! Gwynne is fantastic in every sense of the word. As is Brad Greenquist who plays Victor Pascow, a walking corpse who helpfully ties together this world and the next for the characters still living. It's not the best film ever. I'm sure the book is better, but it is very good and you'd be right to put your faith in King. The moral of the story, "Sometimes dead is better". Oh and never move house, that never goes well in films does it.
The Blob (1988)
Still brilliant!!!
I remember watching this on late night TV sometime in the early 90s and loved it, but does it still stand up? Sleepy small town America, it's always America isn't it, is the site of an alien crash landing. A cast of colourful characters have to put aside their differences to survive. You've got Flagg (Kevin Dillion), the leather jacket sporting long haired dropout and Meg (Shawnee Smith), the popular cheerleader. Along with a few classic jocks, a very young Erika Eleniak and Jeffrey DeMunn as Herb the Cop. They're all in danger, not from little green men, but from... The Blob! This is the genius of this film, both from the writers and the FX department too. Although B-Movie in tone, the premise is really effective and it looks great, still! The gore is gnarly. Severed limbs and bodies digested as The Blob works its way through town, growing with each conquest. They don't know what's going on, but as the night draws in, everyone is drawn together as a big pink gelatinous blob slowly takes over the screen. Thats it. Simple. The FX are cheesy in places, but still really cool. The cast although cliched are great. The whole thing while fantastic, is oddly realistic. There's some classic scenes, like Fran (Candy Clark) getting frantic in a phone box and the panic at the cinema as the scientists roll into town like an ET homage to save the day... and fix their mess. Is it perfect? No, but that doesn't stop it being brilliant and it easily lives up to my memory.
The Company of Wolves (1984)
Doesn't know what it wants to be.
Rosaleen (Sarah Patterson) lives in a big bohemian country pile with her equally posh parents and her annoying older sister. Neither the situation or the location is important though, for the entire film plays out in an alternate dreamt fantasy world as Rosaleen sleeps in her room. We're whisked away into the woods, where she's reimagines herself in a gothic time of horse drawn carriages, petticoats and wild beasts. Dangers that she's warned of by Granny (Angela Lansbury). On the surface it's like Labyrinth meets Little Red Riding Hood. Stories are told within dreams, fiddles are played and wolves howl. All a bit dull honestly, until a very young Stephen Rea starts tearing his flesh off and turns into a werewolf. That's essentially the premise. Fairy tales told, loosely around the dangers of men with a reasonably hefty dose of gore here and there. It's saving grace for all it's clunky plot, is it's pretty well acted and the sets although of their time are well put together. It's just that the fantasy probably puts off the horror fans and vice versa. It doesn't quite know what it wants to be. It's a curious film of patchwork scenes, one featuring Terrance Stamp apparently as the devil, but it doesn't tie together very well and limps toward an unsatisfying finish. The dogs masquerading as wolves are cute though.
Shivers (1975)
Good early Cronenberg.
It's the 70s, the boom of modern living. Tower block homes as a utopian choice, rather than housing shortage social decline. On the outskirts of Montreal are Starliner apartments. Fully equipped, restaurants, stores, pool, a doctor, all on an idyllic little island. Lovely right? Nope, for this is David Cronenberg film. A young couple come to get the tour, whilst a man strangles a girl in an upstairs apartment, before cutting both her and himself open. Not friendly behaviour on the face of it. But he knows something we don't. It's typically eerie with sparse sound, quite violent and an arresting start to a film that is instantly off the rails. Nick (Allan Kolman) personifies this. He's a classic Cronenberg character. Dead eye stare and a cold personality. He's also got a pain in his stomach. We're in body horror territory. There's an infection of sorts and it's down to people like Dr St. Luc (Paul Hampton) to figure out just what the hell is going on. Something he does quickly enough. Cronenberg dispenses with the mystery. This is all about building the tension to the imminent horror. Even the acting quality is somewhat dismissed as superfluous. Characters are really just fodder for the... Shivers. It's not brilliant, but that's almost the point. The tone is nasty and exploitive, with more than one scene that makes little sense at all and remarkably although it's only 90 minutes, feels it could lose at least half an hour. It does have style though, in a cheap lofi sense and serves as an early signpost for where Cronenberg was headed. Worth a watch for any fan.
House on Haunted Hill (1999)
Skip this and watch the original.
After watching the fantastic 1959 original, I'm expecting to be a little disappointed with this. The premise is the same, random group of strangers (or are they), invited to a spooky venue for the night. Get through it and pocket some money. The haunted house is actually an asylum this time. It too has a history and quite a horrible one with a doctor Vannacutt doing unspeakable things to patients who revolt and torch the building. Lots of ghosts. In the present day we're introduced to Stephen Price (Geoffrey Rush) with a terrible moustache (clearly a dodgy ode to Vincent Price) and 90s sunglasses being interviewed by Lisa Loeb. It really could get much more 90s in style and feels oddly more outdated than the original that's 40 years older. He's got money and is not getting on with his spoilt wife Evelyn (Famke Janssen). She wants a birthday party in the asylum that she's seen on TV and so guests are invited as Marilyn Manson sings 'Sweet Dreams'. It tries too hard to be scary. Thats its main issue. It doesn't engage. The couple enter the house with 4 guests, plus Pritchett (Chris Katten) who's connected to the 'house' and its history. They're not the guests Stephen or Emily though. Something is going on. Two of those things are terrible acting and shockingly bad editing. I've nothing against a nonlinear narrative but this is an absolute mess. With everyone locked in, it's survival time. Pritchett didn't want to stay, he knows the danger, but like everyone else, sets about finding a way to get out. It seems that they've all quickly forgotten about the game to stay until dawn, but it struggles with details in general. No one trusts anyone and perhaps rightly so. Stephen for instance has Schecter (Max Perlich) in the basement. Watching on CCTV and pulling switches to scare the guests. Stephen you see runs theme parks and this is his gimmick. It does all feel like theme park faire to be fair. Before long, they're all wandering around abandoned corridors with flickering lights and upturned wheelchairs, that lead to filthy creepy rooms with cobwebs and hospital beds. There are some neat devices and decent effects, it's not all jump scares, but the cast are so damn annoying, you want them to all get killed as fast as possible for this to be over. The original for its flaws has purpose, this has none. Just lots of visuals that wouldn't look out of place in a NIN video. A truly terrible film. Don't bother, just watch the original.
House on Haunted Hill (1959)
B-movie brilliance.
I'm watching this in prep for the 1999 remake, but this is quite arresting from the get go. We're told of a haunted house by Frederick Loren (Vincent Price), whose wife Annabelle (Carol Ohmart) is throwing a party at said house, it's her party, remember that. Not a regular party though. One that if you survive, you pocket 10 grand... if. Everyone is introduced and knows what they're getting in to and they all need the money. It's like a Twilight Zone episode with the emphasis on ghosts. The location looks fantastic and I believe is still standing high up in the Hollywood hills. Five souls enter and soon realise they're not leaving unless they survive the night. Price is at his very best. Suave and sinister. He unsurprisingly carries this, but the cast are all good. Like Prichard (Elisha Cook Jr.) who knows of the house's history of murders and sets the skittish tone. He's a believer. Lance (Richard Long) and Nora (Carolyn Craig) are the young beautiful skeptics, but they'll soon be convinced. As will I. This may be an old kooky black and white b-movie, but the scares are effective. Granted they might feel a bit tropey to modern eyes, but it's genuinely thrilling. Are there really ghosts, or just a cunning killer and if it's the latter, just who might that be. It's wonderfully creepy. The score is brilliant. The lack of colour only helps with the spooky shadows and Carolyn Craig sure can scream! It's got its flaws, but it's still very entertaining and 65 years on, that's not bad going. The remake has big boots to fill.
Bob Marley: One Love (2024)
Better listening to Bobs albums, you'll learn more.
Everyone loves Bob Marley right? I do, but other than some vague knowledge of him not being as perfect as the legend suggests, I'm not at all clear on his life. There's none of that in One Love though, which leads me to think it's not the best film to fill in the blanks. It's a slick surface puff piece. That doesn't mean it's bad though. The focus is one Bobs search for peace. Jamaica is volatile in the 70s, political struggles overflow into violence. Bob (Kingsley Ben-Adir) plans to unite the country and the world with music. It helps that the music is incredible and it's never far away. It leans heavily on the back catalogue. It sort of works in that the lyrics of songs like 'I Shot the Sheriff' carry messages that work in context, but it does feel a bit crowbarred in places. Bob may trust in Jah, have faith in peace, but his countrymen don't all agree. In guns they trust and there's a lot of shooting. That's the story in a nutshell, Bobs spirituality and stubborn belief verses the real world violence. Ben-Adir isn't bad. He looks the part, gets the mannerisms, sells the voice (not the singing one, he mimes over the real Bob), but he feels authentic, even in the live concert sections, but the structure feels televisual, back when TV wasn't the art form it is today. It's clunky, reminding me of the dream sequence nonsense of Gladiator, schmaltz laden with stings. At best it lacks grit, at worst it feels like a cast of caricatures, especially when Bob goes to London and watches The Clash. How that got signed off is beyond me. It feels like a wasted opportunity. Jumping wildly around without any backbone. It doesn't get under the skin. James Norton, usually capable of real depth feels ridiculous as Bobs English manager. Despite all these many problems, it is still quite watchable. I don't feel like I learned a thing about Marley and his life, but it did make me want to put a Marley record on. Maybe this was just to flog the name. That's how it feels. Great tunes though and you'll learn more by listening to Bobs lyrics than watching this film.
Anatomie d'une chute (2023)
Dark drama.
This is tense from the outset and for two and a half hours it rarely lets up. As we meet Sandra (Sandra Hüller), she's being interviewed in her snow surrounded chalet home. Until her husband starts irritatingly blasting calypso music upstairs. We don't really get to meet him until in the pre title scene he takes the apocryphal fall. He's found be his partially blind son Daniel (Milo Machado-Graner) and his dog Snoop. The question is of course, did he fall? There's obvious suspicion. Sandra leads us through her version of events as she recounts them to Vincent (Swann Arlaud), a friend... and lawyer, possibly something more. He's there to help Sandra, but he points out what we're all thinking. Sandra is a murderer. We're in dark scandi thriller territory and it's well executed. Leading us and Sandra through awkward reenactments, that uncover the hidden details. Details that Daniel's blindness alone can see. He's to be the star witness in the trial, but with the suspect being his mother, checks are put in place. One being Marge (Jehnny Beth) who I'm a little surprised to see after last seeing her on stage singing in the band Savages. She's very good, as is Hüller, Arlaud and Samuel Maleski who plays the deceased. That pivotal opening scene anchors everything that follows, with a slowly unfolding whodunnit played out in the courtroom and the audiences minds, deftly revealing its narrative in a natural way as it digs its way to the bottom of a thoughtfully psychological drama.
Poor Things (2023)
Magnificent.
From the very first frame you can tell that Yorgos Lanthimos is going to take you on a fantastic ride. Bella Baxter (Emma Stone) is in the care of mad scientist Goodwin (Willem Dafoe). We meet them in opulent black and white surreal surroundings, half shot with a fish eye lens. When I say surreal I mean literally as a dog with a ducks head follows Bella around the house. Goodwin likes putting things back together. Bella likes breaking them. She's learning you see. A young woman, she's the mental capacity of a toddler. Goodwin is loving, if not always responsible, a product of his tortured childhood, his understanding of love is somewhat... altered. Max (Ramy Youssef) an eager student in Goodwin's macabre surgical classes is invited to help on a project, Bella. Despite its grotesque Victoriana, it's sweet. Bella, innocent and fearless, is trying to find her way. It's quite a story and wastes no time. Goodwins controlled world for Bella is complex and a little terrifying. She's an experiment and Max doesn't really approve. Especially when he learns of how Bella monstrously came to be. Never the less, Max falls for Bella, which complicates things with the arrival of Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo). He's not a nice bloke, but he offers freedom and Bella is hell bent on grabbing it. The men here are the poor things. They underestimate Bella's veracious capacity and curiosity for life and life in a Lanthimos film offers much to be curious of. Every frame is packed with metaphor and mystery. I feel like I could watch this ten times over back to back and still find something different each time. As Bella explores, her world is saturated with colour in hyper fantastic scenes that explode from the screen in much the way Bella does. She has no filter, acts on pure instinct. Loves the things she likes, cares little for those she doesn't, like a crying child in a restaurant, "I must go punch that baby". Witty, satirical, bloody hilarious. It's easy to enjoy, but you have to embrace it. It's a decedent trip, but the crafted visuals mask its real majesty. Who are we, what are we, why are we. As Bella's eyes are opened, ours of focused. Stone is magnificent, her character commands every scene and she carries it with ease. Ruffalo is great too and Dafoe even with the easy win of fantastic make up delivers a typically magnetic performance. It's lavish, but doesn't make anything hard to follow. Allow it and it's quite accessible. A feast for the eyes and the mind, with a cast of characters blessed with hidden depth. I really wasn't expecting to love this as much as I did. It's a must watch for any fan of cinema, for anyone at all in fact. A rollercoaster with a delightful sting in its tail. We should all be more Bella.
The Outfit (2022)
Well crafted...
Gangster films can be very hit or miss. The great ones become classics, the rest feel like cash ins. That probably sets the bar too high for The Outfit... or does it. We meet Leonard (Mark Rylance), an English tailor in cold 1950s Chicago. He's particular, precise, a details man who reads others, notices things, he's respectable... or is he. He allows his shop as a drop off front for the local mob. An unassuming figure, he looks out for his assistant Mable (Zoey Deutch), who's fallen in with Richie (Dylan O'Brien), one of the mobsters with a chip on his shoulder who comes to collect. It's a nice set up. We learn of 'The Outfit' who drop envelopes that Richie and his mate Francis (Johnny Flynn) collect and we learn that Mable in envious of Leonard's well travelled past, all while never leaving the shop. Leonard is calm in a crisis and with mobsters comes crisis. There's a turf war going on and The Feds are sniffing around. Leonard finds himself sewn into a story he wants no part of... or does he. This is The Outfits strength, it burns slow, but picks up pace with carefully crafted dialogue just when needed. The narrative is drip fed and twists with bluffs and intercut timelines that draw the viewer in deftly. Watching, I'm guessing this has been adapted from a play. It's got all the hallmarks. Small cast, one location and lots of talking. Flynn is great, Deutch too, in fact the entire cast does a sterling job, but none more than Rylance, he elevates this to something much more than a gangster film and delivers a performance packed with style.
Calamity Jane (1953)
I enjoyed this more than I expected!
I was talking with a friend about how I've come to accept that I love musicals, after denying it for years, and wondered if it stems from my mother having a VHS tape of Calamity Jane that got a real hammering in the 80s. I'm sure I hated it at the time, probably because I wanted to watch cartoons, but I don't think I've ever sat down with it and given it a proper watch. So here goes... In case you're not aware, we're in the Wild West. It's not that wild, but there is a lot of singing. In fact it doesn't hold back, with 'The Deadwood Stage' "whip crack(ing) away" bringing Calamity Jane (Doris Day) into town to the local saloon, the Golden Garter. Now there's some questionable gender politics at play here. Calamity is accepted by the yeehaw cowboys of Deadwood because she dresses and acts like them. It struggles with the role of Native Americans too, who according to 50s American Hollywood politics were "painted vermin". Different times I guess, but still it's dated badly. Calamity is only interested in fending off Indians on the trail, telling tall tales about it and delivering goods to the great unwashed. Oh and Danny (Philip Carey), she's "kinda soft" on him, although it's clear that's not gonna work out. Everything is a bit upside down actually and I guess that's the fun, no one is quite what they seem to be. Particularly Francis Fryer (Dick Wesson) an entertainer mistakenly booked as a woman, then forced to dress up as one or get lynched. Not really. There's no serious violence here, just plenty of farce and a cast of caricatures. Honestly if it weren't for the songs, I'm not sure this would've got very far. Calamity has a good heart and sets out to help the Golden Garter that's in need of a proper starlet actress to entertain the braindead masses. Setting out to find Adelaid Adams (Gale Robbins) who's rather pompous, she insteads mistakes her for Katie Brown (Allyn Ann McLerie) a wannabe actress who spots her chance at making it to the stage, only to find it's in the backwater. Deadwater fawns over her and after moving in with Calamity, soon everyone, including Wild Bill Hicock (Howard Keel) sees a different side to Calamity, as the inevitable change from cowboy clobber to pretty frocks takes place. Schmaltz right? This is all safe and saccharine, but it's entertaining too. Utterly ridiculous, but entertaining... and I'll have "whip crack away" stuck in my head for weeks!
6/10.
Rye Lane (2023)
Perfect. Don't read this, just watch.
This is a vibrant story of broken hearts, hopeful futures and "sockless wonders". Set in South London, Dom (David Jonsson) and Yas (Vivian Oparah) are surrounded by the hipsters and colourful characters of Rye Lane. They are both instantly likeable, even lovable. Dom is shy, Vivian outgoing. As they walk around the Neighborhood to a fateful meeting for Dom, Vivian helps him open up. It sounds serious and dramatic right? And it kinda is, but it's all delivered with a healthy amount of comedy making it all the more engaging. Now when I say it's funny, I mean genuinely bloody hilarious, simply because it's not trying hard to be. It's all so beautifully woven into the characters and their dialogue, it feels authentic. As the duos day begins to reveal more of their lives to us, so it is to each other. It's wonderfully entertaining, brimming with heart and one of the most enjoyable films I've watched in some time.
Priscilla (2023)
Poor Priscilla.
I suppose this is destined to be a little controversial. After all it's the other side of the story isn't it and perhaps not the side that many want to hear. That said, we now live in a world when people lap controversy up and wallow in the tearing down of fame. Don't watch this for that though, there's real people at the core and thus this demands a little more respect. Priscilla (Cailee Spaeny) is a teenager (there's the controversy) dragged out to a German airforce base with her parents, where "there's nothing to do". Turns out this is where Elvis Presley (Jacob Elordi) is based too. Rather oddly she's invited to a party at Elvis' place and things go from there. I'm not saying this is grooming, but she's 15 and 10 years younger than Presley. This really isn't all that comfortable viewing. Elvis is a bit creepy and certainly manipulative. Granted it's a different time as they say, but no one's under any illusions as to what's happening. "Just what is the intent here?" asks her father to Presley, but that's about as far as any objection goes. It could be said that while Priscilla is mature (debatable), then Elvis is immature (or good at pretending). Take his fame away and he's just a predator. Allow him the fame and everything we know, still just a predator. There's a reason there's none of his music in this film, I'm sure his estate tried to block this. It's all based on Priscilla's book though, so I guess it's her word against those intent on upholding the myth. Back in the States, Elvis invites her to Graceland where other party goers remark "She's young. Looks like a little girl". Certainly not ready for what's to come, a rollercoaster ride with a pill-popping playboy. Drinking, gambling, sex (with everyone but Priscilla), drugs... but no rock n roll. This doesn't show the day job. What it does show is a young girl lead along, treated as a play thing when it suits Presley. She's a doll. Kept in a box that is the inner sanctum of his trusted world. Spaeny is very good and she's holds the focus well. As she should, it's her story. Elordi is great as Elvis though and is overbearing when on screen. Again that's the point. It all looks the part. It's well acted. It's paced well, but it's not enjoyable. It's frustrating. A story of abuse. Is it all Elvis' fault. Well maybe not all of it, but he's certainly not a nice bloke. In fact everyone is pretty obnoxious. Poor Priscilla.
Ferrari (2023)
Ironically slow.
I'm a car fan, but not a fanatic. I'm an F1 fan, but think it's lost its way. I'm more than aware of the myth of Ferrari. It's just that though, a swirl of romanticised history lost in a flash of red. The question is, is it better that way or is there some worth at looking under the hood. Expect lots of style and sheen here as we head back to the mid 50s to meet Enzo Ferrari (Adam Driver) in post war Italy, trying to build fast cars to match his lifestyle. It's dangerous of course, as is his wife Laura (Penélope Cruz) who tries to keep his philandering in check with a revolver. It tries valiantly to add some heft to the story. A family shrouded in tragedy, from the war, lost children, failing marriages and both Driver and especially Cruz portray it well, but it still feels like padding. This all services the myth, but it's not until we hear an engine roar that this finds any traction. It's not a Ferrari though, it's a competitor, Maserati. Even then it's ironically slow. Enzo is cold and controlled. Unwilling to compromise, even as the company spirals into debt. In short he's stubborn. The solution posed is obviously to win more races and promote the brand, "Win on Sunday, sell on Monday". It all feels a bit muddled though, the racing is fun, when we finally get there. There's plenty of history, but it's mostly surface and its biggest problem is Enzo, he's just not very likable. I found myself not rooting for him and his cars one bit. He seems incapable of the romance we're sold on, he just strings people along, like his mistress Lina Lardi (Shailene Woodley). Aside Cruz, the acting is all a bit wooden, although a small role for Patrick Dempsey is fun, at least he's authentic as a proper petrol head. He's one of a team of drivers that will compete for Ferrari in the Mille Miglia, a 1600km race across Italy. The race sequences are fun. Full of low angles and gear changes. The cars look spectacular and the guttural engine sounds are magnificent. It helps too that the Italian countryside and towns both look incredible. It's the very definition of cinematic. Neither this or Cruz (who carries this) is quite enough to save this though. It's not terrible, just a bit flabby and unfocused or maybe, just maybe there's not that much substance behind the myth.