Thoughts on Cinema

It’s that time of year again, so as you remove the razor blades from the apples and wonder why certain candies taste funny, check these flicks out.

BLACULA  ( 1972)

Despite the black exploitation nature, it really isn’t a bad vampire picture with William Marshall giving a very commanding performance, A Nubian prince is bitten by Dracula himself,  reawakens to the present day to seek out his lost love now reincarnated again.

Nightlife will never be the same.

SCARY FUN

 

What keeps you alive  (2018)

Two women in love realize they’re really not cut out for each other. See what I did there?

CHILLER SUSPENSE

 

Wishmaster  (1997)

This movie doesn’t get enough recognition. An evil djinn grants your most desirous of wishes, with the results of getting more than you bargained for. Plenty of cameos of horror icons like Robert England and Tony Todd passing through to give it a bit of class. There is a good deal of humor but the horror is played straight.

SCARY FUN

 

Crawl  (2019)

In the tradition of JAWS, comes this triple down feature with Crocodiles munching their way through a river soaked town. Mangia everybody.

SCARY FUN

 

The Void  (2016)

Possibly the most Lovecraftian story that Lovecraft didn’t write.  This throwback gives a nod toward old school practical effects and delivers in spades. Throw in killer cults, failed experiments and a doorway to wherever and you got a party going on. Sit tight, the gore is going to hit the fan.

SCARY FUN

 

Beyond the Door  (1974)

Not remotely in the same class as The Exorcist,  but in an odd way it certainly sits at the back of the room. A young mother pregnant with her third child behaves erratically, which may be due to the unborn child being the antichrist. Expect the usual tropes that were already cliche even at that time. Still there’s a few creepiness to be mined here.

SCARY FUN

 

The girl with all the Gifts  (2016)

Zombie films are such a tired genre, but along comes Train to Busan to give us a new perspective.  The Girl with all the gifts offers up another unique approach. The world is already ravaged by hordes of infected zombies because of a fungal disease, but hope lies with an intelligent but curious little girl imprisoned by a military/ science facility. Suffering from the same affliction, and being a hybrid may hold the key in finding a cure, only things don’t go as planned in this dystopian landscape.

SCARY FUN

 

The Body Snatchers (1945)

Why get your hands all dirty digging up cadavers when they’re are live victims about. Mood period piece courtesy of Robert Wise and Val Newton. They don’t come better than this.

OLD SCHOOL CLASSIC

 

 

Overlord  (2018)

What’s a world war 2 movies without a few nazi soldiers and inhuman creatures trying to obliterate our American GIs, Hey…would I be mistaken if somehow this seems like an adaptation of the video game Wolfenstein…no;  Nevermind.

SCARY FUN

 

 

Zodiac  (2007)

If you’re ever wondering what inspired  Netflix’s  Manhunter series, look no further than David Fincher’s crime thriller, based on a true story on the procedural hunt for the real-life serial killer Zodiac. Not technically a horror film but the eeriness may have you looking over your shoulder now and then.

CHILLER SUSPENSE

 

There are at least three requirements I need when it comes to big budget Hollywood horror films, I call it the Poltergiest (1982) test, either scare, creep or thrill me. Some films very rarely do all if any. IT based on Stephen  King’s novel of the same name, falls somewhere between being interesting enough  that I didn’t fidget to much in my seat and wasn’t  bored, fact is for all the money spent on this,  its very light on the scares or rather the ineffectivenes of it.  What works are the performances from the young stars  but the two that impressed me the most were ( Jeremy Ray Taylor ) as the bullied fat kid and (Sophia lillis) the lone female of this little band of outcasts, privately struggling with her own sexual maturity and the problems that comes with it. she is the shining star out of the group and probably the best jailbait ever on screen for teen boys since Ally Sheedy from Wargames.

The overall premise  is meshed with a coming of age tropes mixed with childhood fears.  A sewer dwelling entity called Pennywise ( played with obvious menace 101 by Bill Skarsgard ),  using various visages of a circus clown and other nightmarish images to terrorize the youngsters of Derry Maine, consuming their life and fears for immortality every 27 years. Director (Andy Muschietti ) telegraph the spectoral situations with a pedestrian eye suited more for a Halloween parade in daylight. As sadly suspected  loud clanging music and a generic jump scare style follow,  making no lasting impression.  The movie is listless, lacking a grounded urgency to give any gravitas to the events thát we the audience should be invested in. Despite all this the film still holds our interest when the kids are on screen dealing with earthly problems like social acceptability or personal  difficulties. It is the Stand by Me moments that actually work best.

Unfortunately when the supernatural starts getting in gear, the film falters, missing some really needed complexities to flesh out the town’s history and a few minor character aside, but at least IT has a reasonable running time.

Bring on part 2.

I give it a decent Pabst blue ribbon, but a chaser is neêded.

 

Around this time of year just about every website ad nausea , roll out the their top ten or twenty horror films to  join in the over crowded recommendation pile. So we at Thoughts on Cinema might as well join in. Below are eight carefully selected suggestions to binge all night long. To help in the order to watch them, there is a fear meter under :   Scary fun-frights with a few laughs,   Downright Disturbing- well done but uncomfortable subject matter,   Chiller Suspense -moments of creepiness and mystery and old school classic - refined horror at its best.

If you don’t see the usual suspects like the Exorcist or the Shining, it was left off mainly because their already “go to” favorites everywhere else online, going to try some curve balls here and there. So get ready with your Netflix or illegally favorite torrent site, get that burnt popcorn going  and see what nightmares are really made of.

 

Diabolique (1955)

Forget the remake with Sharon Stone, watch the french version instead. An abused wife and neglected mistress murders husband, only to find the body missing later and peculiar occurrences plaguing both women.{ Chiller Suspense}

 

Phantasm (1979)

Mausoleums, flying finger monsters, the tall man,  spheres that drill into your head and  killer dwarfs  from another dimensions, What does it all mean, I haven’t a clue but this is the most original horror fantasy at that time and even now. { Scary fun}

 

 

Fiend without a face (1958)

The  usual mishaps of science experiments  gone way wrong.One of the few Sci-fi with a creepy feel to it. The appearances of the creatures once invisible is especially high on the eek meter.{old school classic} 

Martyrs (2008)

Child abuse escalating  into  violent vengeance, which leads to something even worse. One of the few horror films that actually perturbed me. This is not for the squeamish.{ Downright Disturbing }

 

Carnival of Souls (1962)

Forget its low budget minimalist leanings, it actually works in its favor. Woman survives a  drag racing accident that kills her friends, but the trauma has left her feeling disconnected to things and seeing strange figures that are not there. The atmosphere of unease permeates from scene to scene. { old school classic .}

 

The Descent (2005)

How dangerous could cave expedition be, our women explorers are about to find out, Oh yeah there is something down there alright. { Scary fun}

 

Noroi: The Curse (2005)

A found footage that actually has a story to it, this Japanese import deals with a paranormal documentarian investigating a case which in terms leads to his disappearance. The events are put together by the film evidence left behind.  After  awhile the unraveling tale creates a thick sense of dread to it. {Chiller Suspense }

From Beyond (1986)

Based  0n H.P. lovecraft ‘s short story.   A machine called a Resonator is made to stimulate the human pineal gland, giving the person to perceive and enter another dimension where all sorts of big and small critters lurk. When the apparatus goes out of control…. well you can see for yourself. { Scary fun}

Happy Halloween folks!!

 

 

 

 

An ordinary Polish man, struggling to make ends meet in NJ, ran into all the wrong people who gave him an offer he could not refuse, and uncovered his true calling in life that of a remorseless killer. If you’ve heard the expression, “Skeletons in the closet” before, one would have to wonder if the notorious Richard Kuklinski had a walk-in closet that extended 7 city blocks. By the end of the Iceman, the mystery remained was there ever a soul underneath the relentless thick layers built upon over the years?

Directed by Israeli filmmaker Ariel Vromen, The Iceman was a biopic that didn’t feel the need to over explain every thing about its central lead. Thus it preserved a sense of mystery, an essential ingredient when filming a story about a larger than life killer. Glimpses of Richard Kuklinski’s past are portrayed through 2 lines of dialogue. He had an abusive upbringing and his brother was just as troubled.

Michael Shannon who has an affinity for uncanny roles and memorable performances, was a natural fit as Richard Kuklinski. No stranger to playing a subdued character with a constricted affect and disturbed, internally preoccupied look, he gave a character with very little background, some subtle personality and even a sense of humor in a complex role that called for emotional detachment at very intense, violent moments throughout the film. It was that delicate balance that made Kuklinski not unlike any person whose profession entailed making objective decisions in ending life.
As his character’s love interest, Deborah played by Winona Ryder juxtaposed Shannon’s performance as someone who was emotionally fragile, trusting, and hopelessly naïve. While Richard buried his emotions, he was drawn to Deborah because there was a sense he could see that she accepted being emotional and wore her emotions on her sleeve. The dynamic of these two lovebirds that inevitably start a family life became the focal point for Kuklinski’s motivations and need to lead two lives.

Like all mob related films, it became clear that the ability to lead two lives never worked out like it did in comic books. In the end, untrustable people have no qualms about selling someone down a river. While Ray Liotta mailed it in as his 4th sleazy low-level mobster role, the performances of David Schwimmer and Chris Evans added some fresh, quirky characterizations, sporting some of the grungiest looks and fashionable staches.

For the great performances, The Iceman rated fine bourbon that became more and more complex as you worked your way to the bottom of the glass.

Cheers,

Ron

Sometime in the near future, mankind endured a catastrophic alien attack that wiped out most of human life and civilization. Stationed above the Earth in an outpost resembling a condo designed by Apple overlooking what was once NYC, Jack (Tom Cruise) and his partner Victoria (Andrea Riseborough) are a watch dog/maintenance team entrusted with surveying the last collection of vital supplies before accompanying the mission to travel to the next star. When the departure date became imminent, Jack’s intuition caused him to have second thoughts about the course laid out for him. Like an itch he couldn’t scratch, Jack questioned orders and started to investigate on his own without authorization. His behavior pattern might suggest a psychotic break or the possibility that there was something wrong?

Director Joseph Kosinski brought together familiar components from 1970s Science Fiction films such as the Omega Man and Silent Running. When Cruise trekked out into the wasteland, there was something contemplative about man’s mortality, his legacy, and how at peace the Earth looked. Similar to his previous film Tron Legacy, he brought a polished, sophisticated use of computerized special effects that never failed to inspire a sense of beauty in the midst of urban ruin. Oblivion was a good-looking movie that one might not even need dialogue to enjoy the art captured its camerawork.

However the story suffered from too many cliché plot twists that never raised the bar from the material it was inspired by. Even though Tom Cruise was electric and his presence was commanding, familiar roles played by Morgan Freeman and Olga Kurylenko flattened out the performances. In the last 10-15 minutes Oblivion delivered an ending that didn’t offer many surprises. Thus the film became generic.

Oblivion offers the familiar distinguished taste of a house brew. It won’t make you regret you had it but it won’t compel you to drink another.

Cheers,
Ron

In the tradition of nihilistic not-so-distant future satires the Purge, a right wing American act to deal with interpersonal conflict, legalized manslaughter for 12 hours and somehow that release of aggression has eliminated crime and unemployment for the next 364 days of the year. Ethan Hawke, played James Sandin, an unscrupulous home security salesman who celebrated the Purge like it was the Christmas holiday. Business for home security systems against invaders was never better for those who could afford them. To further draw parallels, the day was commemorated with blue flowers that harkened back to the tradition of putting out poinsettia plants on Christmas. While James Sandin and his wife played by Lena Headey acknowledged the Purge, they were not participants. They chose to stay home, protected by their security, divorcing themselves and their kids from the psychotic, senseless slaughter outside their door. When his naïve son offered shelter to a homeless man fleeing a hunting party during the Purge, the successful suburban American family faced an unpleasant moral dilemma: Sacrifice the homeless man marked for death and guarantee their families lives but lose their dignity and children’s respect. Save the homeless man and take their chances with their lives at stake.

James DeMonaco, director of Assault on Precinct 13 (2005) and The Negotiator is no stranger to Mexican Standoff scenarios where every one with a motive is a threat and no one can be trusted. The build up tension was well played until the siege had begun and the participants were put in motion. From that point, the film steadily de-evolved into a level of predictable, repetitive stupidity more reminiscent in schlock horror but without the dark humor. Missing from the carnal stew was a few slices of well placed socio-political dark humor that director Paul Verhoeven delivered in Starship Troopers and Robocop. Without the humor the story became too concentrated in one area and the film unraveled quickly and clumsily. Still there was just enough with the enticing premise to warrant a sequel where one hopes the morning after the Purge, the writer/director explain how they prevented soaring health care costs and call outs.

As a result, the Purge could have been that bargain worth 5 times its value. Instead, it really was a $4 beer special sold at market price.

Cheers,
Ron

The Romulan Ale fueled fraternity of rule breakers are back, in Star Trek Into Darkness, the sequel to JJ Abrams’ re-imagining of Star Trek as Animal House meets Star Wars. After having survived a Romulan attack from the future, raw and inexperienced Captain Kirk and his crew have learned very little from the lessons bestowed upon them by Admiral Pike and the elder Spock from the alternate time line. After having survived a near death experience forcing the crew to break the Prime Directive, Kirk and Spock still has trust issues to the point where the younglings aren’t even sure they like each other. To further complicate things, young Spock struggled to balance his duties as a first officer and continuing to dip his pen in company ink with Communications officer Lieutenant Uhura. If that resembled an episode of Beverly Hills 90210 in space, the film was very much an angst ridden tweener drama with shots of Romulan ale if not for a post 9/11 trope that involved two villains, looking to escalate the tension between Starfleet and the Klingon Empire. Unfortunately there are no POV outside of Kirk and Spock to give any fresh insight to make the stand off on the edge of Klingon space more dynamic. Benedict Cumberbatch played the rogue mystery man at the center of the storm. When the money shot of his true identity was unveiled, one should have expected a bewildered, “So What?” from an inexperienced Kirk, a confused, “huh?” from most of the audience born after 1989, and from long time Trekies “Groan.”

Cumberbatch’s performance had a cold, calm, calculating presence but his role was nothing more than a plot device to quicken the pace to a sprint at the end with not a moment to contemplate the meaning behind all the running, shooting, explosions, and screaming. The standout performance was Zachary Quinto as Spock. His performance has elevated Spock as the center of Abrams’ universe. He distinguished himself from Nimoy in that Spock used his cold logic as a defense mechanism to be cruel to his human crewmates. Apparently Vulcans have learned the value of embrace your stereotypes. Chris Pine’s Kirk took a back seat as a punching bag and always 3 steps behind the other superior alien characters. This depiction of a fatherless Kirk was very unlikeable in that he’s just plain foolish at every juncture. Shatner’s Kirk was always a coy, brash young man but he wasn’t stupid. Kirk’s recklessness had a virtue. His ability to provoke his opponent into doing something foolish. Re-imagined Kirk just did the most foolish things without any rhythm or reason. It didn’t seem to be necessary to have Kirk in the Captain’s chair at this point. Something one wonder could very well happen if Pine decides to take on another franchise.

In the last 20 minutes the obligatory fan service was hastily slung around, having ignored plot holes it generated so Abrams could deliver the theatrical climax of a giant vessel rammed through downtown San Francisco that realistically slaughtered thousands. To top that gratuitous scene, a final chase between Spock and his nemesis on top of moving transport ships. When the bad man was put away, there’s cut to a nice speech on a clear day about duties and value in the face of terror that never addressed the fact, Kirk and his crew had to break every rule in Star Fleet bring an end to this conflict.

Captains are supposed to make the ultimate sacrifices for the crew but that was never Kirk’s problem. His problem was putting himself in constant jeopardy that led to others taking the hit. Lost in the ADD of CGI was all the life lessons, which made Star Trek so much more contemplative. Instead, its a look that continues to be shallow. Despite the clean, polished look of the film, I have to rate Star Trek Into Darkness a lite beer. It’s not completely unsavory but it never left me with anything memorable. Instead it made me cherish the original Kirk and Spock even more.

Cheers,

Ron

 

Oh what has Paranormal Activity has wrought.

 

With apparently no end in sight, the “found footage” ploy rears it’s over used head again in Scott Derrickson’s Sinister. The approach this time around  is to combine it with back to basic  film narrative as the story plods along. There is however a wonderfully eerie scene at the beginning with an old  Super 8 film shooting  from a distance. A  family of four, hooded and bound, slowly being hanged from a tree mysteriously. Bodies in marionette motion, dances silently in the air before coming still. Losing that effective momentum,  the movie jets ahead to the present as a new family  moves  into a house,  headed by a once successful crime novelist Ellison (Ethan Hawke).  Unbeknownst to his wife  Tracey ( Juliet  Rylance) and the kids, the previous tenants were murdered of which Ellison is secretly researching for hopefully his next bestseller. In the attic he discovers a set of  Super 8 films (yea you know where this is headed), each depicting the gruesome demise of other families in different fashion.  Upon a second viewing, because we know once is not enough, a spectral visage appears in the background.  Rather than turning over the found evidence to the local authorities,  he splices, edits and digitally downloads the films to his computer ( a expertise not seen since Spielberg first picked up a camera)  consults a professor of the occult Vincent D ‘Onofrio (clearly doing a cameo cash grab here), who tries to keep the story on track..sort of.

The snuff footage is  effective but directer   Derrickson doesn’t have a follow up to sustain it, it’s all the cliches of movie horror past–overly long with a meandering third act. Having Hawke’s character wander three times around a darken house, without the common sense to turn on a light switch for at least two of the occasion is  redundantly clumsy. By the way the demon that shows up serves no  purpose other than what not to wear next Halloween.

I give this a domestic beer served at room temperature.

 

 

Wes Craven created a booming franchise with the iconic horror monster Freddy Kruger, a phantasmal killer with homemade razor claws to slash the many cannon fodder teens unlucky enough to get in his way. Several mediocre sequels and a failed anthology TV series later, we see the inevitable reboot of the series in this DVD release.  In this version we get an added origin of sorts as Kruger, with the silly point of him being a notorious pedophile (which adds nothing to the  story, but it’s there in case murder wasn’t evil enough)  is chased down and burned alive by the irate parents. Of course with every evil character, he survives to wreak revenge on the grown kiddies of the next generation. Asides the emphasis on the origin, movie pretty much sticks quite close to the original, But where Craven took his cues by emulating  EC horror comics of the 50′s, giving it a fun, garish and gory style, this imagining takes itself too seriously, losing the comic aspects of what made the first Nightmare so memorable. I would cite the performances, but the truth of the matter is, all of it was just serviceable, the 80′s version had this acting awkwardness  that added to it’s goofy charm,  in comparison the new version seems mechanical and very lethargic, offering nothing more than another gussied up retread to get your attention.

I give this a very warm, domestic beer with a big nasty fly in it.

 

 

A dedicated but scrawny and sickly Steve Rogers (Chris Evans rebooted from the Fantastic Four) agrees to go through an experimental serum that would transform him into the Iconic, flag waving Captain America. Another in the never ending stable of superhero adaptation for the geek squad

Cap is the counterpoint to the evil Red Skull, played in cackling 101 Nazi-ness by Hugo Weaving.

The film jets back and forth between Captain being used as a prop to sell war bonds, all the while the Skull develops weapons of mass destruction, and trying to tap into the power of  a rubic shaped cosmic cube, imbued with the powers of the Gods (Don’t ask).

The military and especially Colonel Chester Phillip (Tommy Lee Jones phoning this one in from his sleep) have doubts and trepidation about losing their lab rat Captain to the front lines, But help by boring love interest Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) and a suave Millionaire inventor Howard Stark ( father of Tony Stark’s Iron man), fly Rogers into enemy territory where he rescues  friend Bucky Barnes ( Sebastian Stan) as well as hundreds of other military prisoners, proving he’s more than a road show commercial. This pushes the evitable confrontation to come between Captain America and the Red Skull.

 

Sounds good on paper, but on film, not much to cheer about.

 

Director Joe Johnston seems clueless in how to make a memorable battle, Action scenes are stitched together with no rhythm, and its all run, punch, leap, surrounded by a background of things exploding. The hero’s trademark speeches of American values while kicking ass, is muted for political correctness for the international film market. He’s just a guy in blue tights that just wants to help out.

Hugo Weaving doesn’t fair much better as the Red Skull, with old school villainy and no dynamic personality to really make him interesting, the trick relies on selling the trademark disfigurement as a makeup gimmick to keep you from not being bored and even that carries no weight, unlike the horrid visage of Nolan’s Two- face from The Dark night. It’s simply a marketing mask for this year’s Halloween.

Probably the biggest issue is Chris Evans as the titled character, he’s plain as un-buttered toast, the Captain is so bland, as to being nonexistent, and in some ways the film is simply a prelude to the video game, although from what I heard, it wasn’t much better.