tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76094510792702991852024-03-18T03:01:16.741+00:00 VideoVistaDVD and Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD reviewsTony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comBlogger214125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-30950011205566713542024-02-22T09:37:00.001+00:002024-02-22T09:40:07.881+00:00Bad Biology<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRMdvONrpXfo61pa_9-TIEtgQiO73tuquHq5PO0l_A92T5zKnEQkQuVbMKVYKpbgrK5e1DQihOx72ijQz5Ti1PuuJ7ymw9Sm11EMRjtmmLeXLfrUXtuTpntefu58EvtTaRUdtnK651SaLbKcM04k5dqtPi1R0IuLGSPlCTOl4t5Lzz5j0M50Z-0f7Tc6A/s555/BAD%20biology1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="464" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRMdvONrpXfo61pa_9-TIEtgQiO73tuquHq5PO0l_A92T5zKnEQkQuVbMKVYKpbgrK5e1DQihOx72ijQz5Ti1PuuJ7ymw9Sm11EMRjtmmLeXLfrUXtuTpntefu58EvtTaRUdtnK651SaLbKcM04k5dqtPi1R0IuLGSPlCTOl4t5Lzz5j0M50Z-0f7Tc6A/w335-h400/BAD%20biology1.jpg" width="335" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast:
Charlee Danielson and Anthony Sneed </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: <span style="background: white; color: black;">Frank Henenlotter</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">84 minutes (18) 2008 </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Severin 4K Ultra HD <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>8/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by <span style="background: white; color: black;">Christopher Geary</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">[Released 26th February]</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After
15 years away from creating horror movies, Frank Henenlotter made a welcome but
outrageous comeback with </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">Bad Biology</b><span style="font-family: verdana;">.
Like a drunken Cronenberg imitator, this OTT black comedy-of-errors about shockingly
abnormal sexuality is often lurid and repeatedly crude, and yet really too deliriously
silly to cause serious offence. Jennifer (Charlee Danielson) is a blonde
‘nymphomaniac’ photo–artist, who has seven clitorises. Her pregnancies seem to last
about two hours, and then she disposes of any unwanted ‘babies’ in dustbins (perhaps that’s where early-</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Henenlotter's</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> mutant </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Basket Case</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">
progeny originated?).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI7qmQEurUvhPKZfUpgkbgvvsELcIfEewNi0q7Puj1foO0FUzoz7Z0PIqkQkNMYHGT0bn3BgUl2RjmgH3O-ujQTTpt0hOQFby6p0AnJOnFUAReFU8mfloKNeuGOi3B9ZCZNsc_PSKBa50W6oFK3JB5iAF8giKU_p57P0VSO3g8HgWkSzvj4nw6e56YVUE/s500/BAD%20biology2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI7qmQEurUvhPKZfUpgkbgvvsELcIfEewNi0q7Puj1foO0FUzoz7Z0PIqkQkNMYHGT0bn3BgUl2RjmgH3O-ujQTTpt0hOQFby6p0AnJOnFUAReFU8mfloKNeuGOi3B9ZCZNsc_PSKBa50W6oFK3JB5iAF8giKU_p57P0VSO3g8HgWkSzvj4nw6e56YVUE/s16000/BAD%20biology2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Batz
(Antony Sneed) has a faulty penis, but he fixed it with regular steroid
injections. Apart from inducing a non–stop hour–long orgasm in hookers, the
troublesome side–effects of drugs and his self–abuse result in Batz’s monstrously
unwieldy cock developing a mind of its own, detaching itself from his body, and
tunnelling through skirting and floorboards, going on a sexual rampage (cue:
farcical stop-motion animated penis–creature!). While Jen takes pictures of
models wearing vagina–face masks, Batz has lonely ‘fun’ at home with a Heath
Robinson-style vacuum apparatus. Of course, they are destined to meet. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgReOQcoztfM06exGxthrBRsZh1GHMQK2RDEKa_d_DI6sm85VzmbCACTfpvsBYGr2J7etH5VmbPPQvo-5tOcvRegyjD0LWIlHMZnRHnfkq6K7UvjWgfbSSjttCy1vZAxfW8SECh1wlZGsJUu17txUa4CKL1m8UYzQhN0XHOwJzt4_xit-1-Khl5FH7Sphs/s500/BAD%20biology3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgReOQcoztfM06exGxthrBRsZh1GHMQK2RDEKa_d_DI6sm85VzmbCACTfpvsBYGr2J7etH5VmbPPQvo-5tOcvRegyjD0LWIlHMZnRHnfkq6K7UvjWgfbSSjttCy1vZAxfW8SECh1wlZGsJUu17txUa4CKL1m8UYzQhN0XHOwJzt4_xit-1-Khl5FH7Sphs/s16000/BAD%20biology3.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPbMo7RdcGexjEMKLXGLkPuHThjN7b_Hq46wVrh-csvKx0usUckYpWT4G6qfUgNvUdBThZJXDGquq3f-dJHr8nbp2s9HAKYmuc6ez8eNyfn3I_2UQeF_TQB55JO6oJryFun2skxt5vIfYpL9IDlIk2rxgeVIQfmEsS5FgOfHBGqyl9y9z6TJcR6AFutEY/s500/BAD%20biology4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPbMo7RdcGexjEMKLXGLkPuHThjN7b_Hq46wVrh-csvKx0usUckYpWT4G6qfUgNvUdBThZJXDGquq3f-dJHr8nbp2s9HAKYmuc6ez8eNyfn3I_2UQeF_TQB55JO6oJryFun2skxt5vIfYpL9IDlIk2rxgeVIQfmEsS5FgOfHBGqyl9y9z6TJcR6AFutEY/s16000/BAD%20biology4.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">What
happens when an unstoppable foreskin meets an insatiable sex object is,
perhaps, the ideal, most surrealistic expression of Henenlotter’s body–horror
weirdness. In retrospect, maybe this ultimately peculiar flick is what the cult
director was actually trying for all along? Obvious thematic predecessors
include brain–fart ‘Elmer’ in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Brain
Damage</i> (1988), and fiendish examples of twisted fetishism in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Frankenhooker</i> (1990). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAaFxmTrnpmt-YmVIl_tn5uZVJGROFP8hh4W0gC6I_if6eU0gFaaLR9W_dgqiQoBPRoGsRxYGtq0ZH1hpYenPRlmf4JKGun6mFdILln_2lrvYUZ-breMVs3I1m2A3o8IkH4fPJwABt3cOl2aHlIQn0bjdWAyXDYSI3ORfwuKDoQP4smHo5KlDmDuygfc/s500/BAD%20biology5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAaFxmTrnpmt-YmVIl_tn5uZVJGROFP8hh4W0gC6I_if6eU0gFaaLR9W_dgqiQoBPRoGsRxYGtq0ZH1hpYenPRlmf4JKGun6mFdILln_2lrvYUZ-breMVs3I1m2A3o8IkH4fPJwABt3cOl2aHlIQn0bjdWAyXDYSI3ORfwuKDoQP4smHo5KlDmDuygfc/s16000/BAD%20biology5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;">Bad Biology</span></i><span style="color: black;"> features porn stars
(Tina Krause, Jelena Jensen), and a main cast of novices, so don’t expect great
acting, but its parody of rapture, a parade of rap studs and junkie whores, and
the comically tacky serial–rape spree, make this knowingly unwholesome treat a nightmarishly
bad–acid antidote to mediocre horror’s predictability and genre respectability.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9WnDPWam6W6cQlcKPdoYitmw4BdfXKonmXwtp0QhCLUDyFzbxnMGys25Sb5KKeu7HgdYDHDr35pPxLleF0P1r32NkxtUi_t9ErVVLmMyy8Dq_MS6rHLeLam7P2gEb3rDtHncDlrwpGq2_ZOlfAJvYTXCwV7e18urHHgYX8bfDNVmSC4VQRxXe0qleWE/s500/BAD%20biology7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9WnDPWam6W6cQlcKPdoYitmw4BdfXKonmXwtp0QhCLUDyFzbxnMGys25Sb5KKeu7HgdYDHDr35pPxLleF0P1r32NkxtUi_t9ErVVLmMyy8Dq_MS6rHLeLam7P2gEb3rDtHncDlrwpGq2_ZOlfAJvYTXCwV7e18urHHgYX8bfDNVmSC4VQRxXe0qleWE/s16000/BAD%20biology7.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4K
disc extras: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Frank Henenlotter, DoP Nick Deeg, and Anthony Sneed</span></li><li><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archival
commentary with director Henenlotter and producer Thorburn</span></span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Bonus
Blu-ray:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentaries
(as above)</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Spook
House</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> - interviews with Henenlotter, Thorburn, production coordinator Michael
Shershenovich, DoP Deeg, retired detective David Henenlotter, and production manager
Chaz Kangas</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">In
The Basement</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> - interview with Charlee Danielson</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Deeg
And Sneed</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> – a conversation between Deeg and Sneed</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Swollen
Agenda</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> – interview with make-up effects artist Gabe Bartalos</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Beyond
Bad</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> – behind the scenes of BAD BIOLOGY</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">F*ck
Face</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> – photographer Clay Patrick McBride</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">SUCK
– short film by Anthony Sneed</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Legendary
Loser</i> – music video by R.A. The Rugged Man</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Thorburn
image gallery – publicity, behind-the-scenes, video covers, death pix </span></li></ul><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKO1-A_cm6JTAt5l-TWZV6aMQecY6BaZ6Oi8WreKC7m_2s-q97ruhUtKBb6spbAwqQ7B9fN0NDkuXUBxpNYQy5tp3ay2nlQi2ZYtQ2XOa5eo4jUD0sgU1LelbQgw0Z-ZmGXX1EFj59uZQTw5UYVkAL15fb77Ujf5-7ykyI-P2GnhCXYRQ1iKpmscPMVo/s526/BAD%20biology9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="526" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKO1-A_cm6JTAt5l-TWZV6aMQecY6BaZ6Oi8WreKC7m_2s-q97ruhUtKBb6spbAwqQ7B9fN0NDkuXUBxpNYQy5tp3ay2nlQi2ZYtQ2XOa5eo4jUD0sgU1LelbQgw0Z-ZmGXX1EFj59uZQTw5UYVkAL15fb77Ujf5-7ykyI-P2GnhCXYRQ1iKpmscPMVo/s16000/BAD%20biology9.jpg" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><p></p>
Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-48930745925140288812024-02-02T11:31:00.000+00:002024-02-02T11:31:29.566+00:00Inside<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjem7cKJnNTzfocyJmC9x9NdUwtd2BotKV6w5GwZI333drZBSepWIDJLVIVI1l0H0EaUInMmkDqpnETOm4z6iOGYdXEv4k0vNe581vHSsu5NEA0XJrcijNUugs8rHyPADnzGnnCNsqKWqnXJAkQmqpS7R43YXWje3_ZYaXKTDyakAzCmvLslJv1Ch1ewm8/s517/Inside1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="517" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjem7cKJnNTzfocyJmC9x9NdUwtd2BotKV6w5GwZI333drZBSepWIDJLVIVI1l0H0EaUInMmkDqpnETOm4z6iOGYdXEv4k0vNe581vHSsu5NEA0XJrcijNUugs8rHyPADnzGnnCNsqKWqnXJAkQmqpS7R43YXWje3_ZYaXKTDyakAzCmvLslJv1Ch1ewm8/w310-h400/Inside1.jpg" width="310" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast:
Alysson Paradis, Beatrice Dalle, and Nathalie
Roussel</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Directors: <span style="color: black;">Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">85 minutes (18) 2007 <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight Blu-ray <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Review by <span style="background: white; color: black;">Christopher Geary</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 5th
February]</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Riding on its decade’s bloody new wave of French horrors
- including such thrillers as Alexandre Aja’s hallucinatory </span><i style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="http://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2024/01/high-tension.html" target="_blank">High Tension</a></i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (aka: </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Switchblade Romance</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">), Xavier Gans’ splattery sci-fi masterwork </span><i style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="http://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2023/07/frontiers.html" target="_blank">Frontiers</a></i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, and Pascal Laugier’s
astonishing </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Martyrs</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> - grisly shocker </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">Inside</b><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (aka: A</span><i style="font-family: verdana;"> l’interieur</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">), brings a gripping claustrophobic power. Directed by
Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury, this stars Alysson Paradis, as heavily
pregnant widow Sarah, and the great Beatrice Dalle as a nameless ‘angel of
death’ - or something quite like it.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd2jSJsn7245GA1IPUSH50-Xuf_tEiy5I8UX9wGxvuROMe-rQ5bJFZKEjHU0LVeVA8FvCIBTZg2XWAgHZqivFxiAlmZoRN84R3Me39DGgFYHRA5ikm2CLxKI4SCPdiX3hqfYKhJn5shdBn50JTNRiKwx2m6-pF6iY94uaI8u59ounlr2MBY64jevtn2P8/s500/inside2.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd2jSJsn7245GA1IPUSH50-Xuf_tEiy5I8UX9wGxvuROMe-rQ5bJFZKEjHU0LVeVA8FvCIBTZg2XWAgHZqivFxiAlmZoRN84R3Me39DGgFYHRA5ikm2CLxKI4SCPdiX3hqfYKhJn5shdBn50JTNRiKwx2m6-pF6iY94uaI8u59ounlr2MBY64jevtn2P8/s16000/inside2.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrDcSd468QEh74bhEL6lkU441djMdfPuh_yf5NQ9td3vs30hvhVXXJKSDVAW4fKQChhz5JBHytJE9qyOkkEIOdCQ3j3UbT-40L4lEIMHwX0Di22sr4CONhMYEYRxYqL7NW7Xan-1hsZ24IOqFE2WTM8IKGpyaFFaK18P8WWR0RTyWRvBIiUWv_M3cSQY/s500/inside4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrDcSd468QEh74bhEL6lkU441djMdfPuh_yf5NQ9td3vs30hvhVXXJKSDVAW4fKQChhz5JBHytJE9qyOkkEIOdCQ3j3UbT-40L4lEIMHwX0Di22sr4CONhMYEYRxYqL7NW7Xan-1hsZ24IOqFE2WTM8IKGpyaFFaK18P8WWR0RTyWRvBIiUWv_M3cSQY/s16000/inside4.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With diabolical sense of purpose, and an unhurried
intensity of destructive envy, Dalle’s almost demonic seeming home-intruder
turns Sarah’s lonely Christmas Eve into a night of mortal dread, locked in a
gore drenched bathroom. Animation of the unborn baby adds a dimension of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">CSI</i> styled graphics to the visual
impact, and there is clever use of sound effects to build tension and suspense,
accentuating an extraordinary violence, which skims along fuzzy borderlines
between absolutely nightmarish fantasy and the brutality of a psychopathic
reality.</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_73cBP4HOXUjdbGq-lf-xJketFN62fkIGiJLrjZTlWgjndgn12En0f5UB_96L3TlkF-tRPOorwbz40xiLrR0Dy1QWWnMXGsO2jWkBntFiOpIxODdJi18CABX7_XtM9qgEZLOTI6F3XxftPXw8XA3oMcGMtvVuCA4DpN5iMGEJsrtfCKqDmMNNlv2pvl4/s500/inside5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_73cBP4HOXUjdbGq-lf-xJketFN62fkIGiJLrjZTlWgjndgn12En0f5UB_96L3TlkF-tRPOorwbz40xiLrR0Dy1QWWnMXGsO2jWkBntFiOpIxODdJi18CABX7_XtM9qgEZLOTI6F3XxftPXw8XA3oMcGMtvVuCA4DpN5iMGEJsrtfCKqDmMNNlv2pvl4/s16000/inside5.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoo8oKpyVV_8VmJqNC0dqGKm6f0Lc36gWpMZVk0Dyrz9bSRD4rgapptj5vXBVkpo20u_SwmmRTExrP8wffQ6ApxBWZEZPNtmYBV2_NfMysc2l4Zu_hYnrFQ3RaiZYZd0A76GWsR0h5tYHtDzSER3wnXhjCqi3N0rGrtXRiIuEYPZzGwwQrrq0uw-uxP7s/s500/inside6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoo8oKpyVV_8VmJqNC0dqGKm6f0Lc36gWpMZVk0Dyrz9bSRD4rgapptj5vXBVkpo20u_SwmmRTExrP8wffQ6ApxBWZEZPNtmYBV2_NfMysc2l4Zu_hYnrFQ3RaiZYZd0A76GWsR0h5tYHtDzSER3wnXhjCqi3N0rGrtXRiIuEYPZzGwwQrrq0uw-uxP7s/s16000/inside6.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Although it’s a short 85–minute feature, action plays non–stop
as visitors to Sarah’s residence only survive a few moments in the
confrontations with Dalle’s antagonist. Cruel and gutsy with a disturbing
savagery, very memorably using a large pair of scissors as multi–purpose
household weaponry, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Inside</i> is a smartly
constructed and fascinating thriller. Its agonies transform Sarah’s quiet suburbia
into a veritable war-zone of wildly inhuman atrocities, without any hints of
compromise or moral restraint. It’s a mesmerising hell of torments, but
definitely not suitable viewing for any mum-to-be in a delicate emotional
condition.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Extras: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">New commentary by Anna Bogutskaya</span></span></li><li><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">New commentary by Elena Lazic</span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;">First
Born</span></i><span style="color: black;"> - new interview with co-writer/directors Alexandre
Bustillo and Julien Maury <o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;">Labour
Pains</span></i><span style="color: black;"> - new interview with Alysson Paradis<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;">A
New Extreme</span></i><span style="color: black;"> - new interview with producer Franck Ribiere<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;">Womb
Raider</span></i><span style="color: black;"> - new interview with cinematographer Laurent Bares<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;">Reel
Action</span></i><span style="color: black;"> - new interview with stunt co-ordinator Emmanuel Lanzi<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
Birth Of A Mother</span></span></i><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> - Jenn Adams on <i>Inside </i></span></span></li></ul><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuF2u2Qz9tSm0EALhFuexSkgA1-ZTAgIZm2gvzhyphenhyphenYJcG8pff7Nv3dfZG49XYNcJqQW4tCTRrZPPFOfPM0MTTHnS9yQmsgwSjlYHcBNL2ki0jNEyY0t__qaJ1v5-ZlrqNXx_LQ7sTsT7MR3HJ2nFHEqNvztF0-lNJnN-VO0c96bttgpXYwQLUv0AxBbiXo/s500/Inside9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuF2u2Qz9tSm0EALhFuexSkgA1-ZTAgIZm2gvzhyphenhyphenYJcG8pff7Nv3dfZG49XYNcJqQW4tCTRrZPPFOfPM0MTTHnS9yQmsgwSjlYHcBNL2ki0jNEyY0t__qaJ1v5-ZlrqNXx_LQ7sTsT7MR3HJ2nFHEqNvztF0-lNJnN-VO0c96bttgpXYwQLUv0AxBbiXo/s16000/Inside9.jpg" /></a><p></p>
Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-18776053712206991332024-01-22T11:23:00.002+00:002024-01-22T11:26:10.669+00:00High Tension<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP5bbh-Qb7suAsRDzxJEsXAS1-Tclb9UdSVOi6bjdR_3rQKqfqSTjIlHiXHCQK2i461uOQcsV5Jh48_Q2IULXI1QHnHTOzy7tBRtnkT8ZXxEJggLdJXleXXjk-bu8L3J9oQfzRwN_fjHCQS2TggyL0RClzmmvnps5Wgymd1SeN5UtVHKLgma6S6YYOeDU/s518/High%20Tension1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="518" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP5bbh-Qb7suAsRDzxJEsXAS1-Tclb9UdSVOi6bjdR_3rQKqfqSTjIlHiXHCQK2i461uOQcsV5Jh48_Q2IULXI1QHnHTOzy7tBRtnkT8ZXxEJggLdJXleXXjk-bu8L3J9oQfzRwN_fjHCQS2TggyL0RClzmmvnps5Wgymd1SeN5UtVHKLgma6S6YYOeDU/w309-h400/High%20Tension1.jpg" width="309" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast:
Cecile de France, Maiwenn, and Philippe
Nahon</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: <span style="background: white; color: black;">Alexandre Aja</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">91 minutes (18) 2003 <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight 4K Ultra HD</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>9/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by <span style="background: white; color: black;">Jonathan McCalmont </span></span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cinema and
literature are in a constant state of flux. Genre formulae and canons are not
fixed, they are constantly challenged by new and innovative works that,
invariably, invite not only imitation but also the re-examination of older
works that were once considered little more than creative cul-de-sacs. Traditionally,
horror films are made for very little money and with relatively inexperienced
directors who make the most of lurid subject matters and formulaic storylines
to secure high returns for their investors whilst learning their trade as
directors. A glance at the history of French cinema will reveal Art house and
mainstream traditions healthy enough to ensure that French film makers have
never needed to pass through the crucible of genre filmmaking before maturing
artistically. As a result, older French horror films tend to be either part of
the Art-house tradition, or part of the trans-European exploitation films of
1960s and 1970s, centred not in France but in Italy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDr-RhnnNmqJNwZ1f1lPR6ROHGAfqqGV-rQ8c709TlR9RnSbnARCb4ooOhc5v2kCWXoa925n_ZqSR8oZU11fILC4IWFimAZfaTiRKP6ZCZJV-2pc0fXtpefZ8dllivY1QtSYY9l5W4d3JZQ3tWMESF0UgOua6vrtbAaKkOKr4ZVEHZFw0Qw_EDJo4wYfg/s500/High%20Tension3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDr-RhnnNmqJNwZ1f1lPR6ROHGAfqqGV-rQ8c709TlR9RnSbnARCb4ooOhc5v2kCWXoa925n_ZqSR8oZU11fILC4IWFimAZfaTiRKP6ZCZJV-2pc0fXtpefZ8dllivY1QtSYY9l5W4d3JZQ3tWMESF0UgOua6vrtbAaKkOKr4ZVEHZFw0Qw_EDJo4wYfg/s16000/High%20Tension3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Twenty
years ago, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">High Tension</b> (aka: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Switchblade Romance</span></i><span style="background: white; color: black;">) is the film that kick-started a wave of
French horror cinema, and it is interesting to note how much of those genre films’
DNA is included in Alexandre Aja’s work. The story begins in a country house
where Marie (Cecile de France) is staying with her friend Alex (Maiwenn Le
Besco) and her family. Marie is masturbating in her room when she hears a sound
downstairs. Going to investigate, she witnesses a large man with an obscured
face brutally murdering Alex’s family before dragging Alex away and locking her
in his van. Marie gives chase and sneaks into the van in the hope of freeing
Alex. But who is the man with the obscured face? </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKYr30U2EptgTf5E4rW7jeN5P1DHdJLOFSmyhaEKijk86oeHAd1gAzY9pMRXu7H5YWn3n8MFWjubG57j9Qk_qTLsqGQAz_xLLyiMSJ0yJwJDfd4F_ehNmHjvw-jJ929GFEreO1ErUaBvS9RUgAELKWQbMHG3K96aSrl_pBGLvIY11eSp9ZePn6e_xAhA/s500/High%20Tension2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="214" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMKYr30U2EptgTf5E4rW7jeN5P1DHdJLOFSmyhaEKijk86oeHAd1gAzY9pMRXu7H5YWn3n8MFWjubG57j9Qk_qTLsqGQAz_xLLyiMSJ0yJwJDfd4F_ehNmHjvw-jJ929GFEreO1ErUaBvS9RUgAELKWQbMHG3K96aSrl_pBGLvIY11eSp9ZePn6e_xAhA/s16000/High%20Tension2.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGduzFpwK2mD4IUOuAvrb4BnpUS2WDPoQ1gAm1TIkjAJetWywYaa11sA6ZoNYa5yw-JcO_zfC2Rl_Cm_R8VH24Jeknd1XrgG6c3MSitFm4R8bOF_LRpdVDMOQt3TbhlR6UfvMnlbJoXAiJNb9517RBss7ot257AcCuE4i_BpJ7MV3I1LvKyA-tk4Ed5cU/s500/High%20Tension5.jpg"><img border="0" data-original-height="216" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGduzFpwK2mD4IUOuAvrb4BnpUS2WDPoQ1gAm1TIkjAJetWywYaa11sA6ZoNYa5yw-JcO_zfC2Rl_Cm_R8VH24Jeknd1XrgG6c3MSitFm4R8bOF_LRpdVDMOQt3TbhlR6UfvMnlbJoXAiJNb9517RBss7ot257AcCuE4i_BpJ7MV3I1LvKyA-tk4Ed5cU/s16000/High%20Tension5.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="color: black;"><i><span style="background: white;">High Tension</span></i><span style="background: white;"> is notable not only for its levels of stress and
incredible violence but also its no-nonsense approach to plot. Where many
horror films spend an eternity introducing you to characters and delivering
back-story, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">High Tension</i> jumps almost
straight into the action. However, this is not to say that the film is shallow.
Aside from the genre conventions that the film plays with, it also through its
use of imagery, and its plot development manages to say a number of interesting
things about gender roles and how one perceives one-self. For example, is a
willingness to use violence an inherently masculine trait and, as a result, are
women who decide to use violence more masculine than those who don’t?</span></span></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDohzen2ISEY4fYtxAdfuziq1YxF6mSjGFA9Xyw2zDmxKNOltabwyf5qncMKy79_T-GnuTV1S3DQlGzztzDlprz1XyFw3jTRqK1lmYRyRTzWWGaMUQ5iNIBdbA9hDBYS-bSkzmAR4K0E_utb2aZM8W57lSR3NBexQmBS26NcEuhyphenhyphenQmlzI92pDA6QuVAU/s500/High%20Tension6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="216" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDohzen2ISEY4fYtxAdfuziq1YxF6mSjGFA9Xyw2zDmxKNOltabwyf5qncMKy79_T-GnuTV1S3DQlGzztzDlprz1XyFw3jTRqK1lmYRyRTzWWGaMUQ5iNIBdbA9hDBYS-bSkzmAR4K0E_utb2aZM8W57lSR3NBexQmBS26NcEuhyphenhyphenQmlzI92pDA6QuVAU/s16000/High%20Tension6.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXJOKjWOlWfie-BXvwKjzrk0iEw1ExSPuUivJ_q7va_LEzY8A5xB3aH37Cb0Q2qcDSNQ9XR5EQxhw6eph8wkjXHDd5-ispo5CH4l3WXhEYY6jDpkcDqjGn1NOjpqy3QGfHaw-KR5oxFth8G7p2v_ENqG7LkcCVHik2tWfwPNMA3xIw4lRQw_8y3WU3ufA/s500/High%20Tension7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXJOKjWOlWfie-BXvwKjzrk0iEw1ExSPuUivJ_q7va_LEzY8A5xB3aH37Cb0Q2qcDSNQ9XR5EQxhw6eph8wkjXHDd5-ispo5CH4l3WXhEYY6jDpkcDqjGn1NOjpqy3QGfHaw-KR5oxFth8G7p2v_ENqG7LkcCVHik2tWfwPNMA3xIw4lRQw_8y3WU3ufA/s16000/High%20Tension7.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Most intriguingly, Aja adopts an Art house
posture towards his audience. Rather than explicitly spelling out the film’s
ideas and message through exposition, he allows the audience to draw its own
conclusions and concoct its own ideas. This, along with the film’s awareness of
the sexual politics of horror, has proved to be a hugely influential approach
to the material.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background: white;">Trailer: </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/o-HYZIWAo8M" width="320" youtube-src-id="o-HYZIWAo8M"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;">Bonus material:</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4K UHD presented in HDR10+ approved by director Alexandre Aja</span></span></li><li><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">New audio commentary by Dr Lindsay Hallam</span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">An
Experiment In Suspense</span></i><span style="background: white; color: black;"> - new interview with Alexandre Aja<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">The Man
In The Shadows</span></i><span style="background: white; color: black;"> - new interview with writer Gregory Levasseur<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">The
Darker The Better</span></i><span style="background: white; color: black;"> - interview with cinematographer Maxime
Alexandre<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">The
Great French Massacre</span></i><span style="background: white; color: black;"> - interview with special effects artist
Giannetto De Rossi<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">Only
The Brave</span></i><span style="background: white; color: black;"> - Alexandra Heller-Nicholas on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">High Tension</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archive ‘making of’ featurette</span></span></li><li><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archive interview with Cecile De France</span></span></li><li><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archive interview with Maiwenn</span></span></li><li><span style="background: white; color: black;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archive interview with Philippe Nahon</span></span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: black;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin7km_OkcocldfM1S3N_Ffz8rFwcrHV5THoBIWVtp7beVeltKe6OM5lqYWv-tVjwhC6BwmTtOH7d0DVaSza31Ytt0eHb5XkBHfVcBv-thvxXaeqpz1ayy-NCAodtFodADXzL6muD2ewZNgqcwsvx9wJN2JH0IzuJr2qDyof6gLAbcEOXftkID9YEGUGVY/s500/High%20Tension9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin7km_OkcocldfM1S3N_Ffz8rFwcrHV5THoBIWVtp7beVeltKe6OM5lqYWv-tVjwhC6BwmTtOH7d0DVaSza31Ytt0eHb5XkBHfVcBv-thvxXaeqpz1ayy-NCAodtFodADXzL6muD2ewZNgqcwsvx9wJN2JH0IzuJr2qDyof6gLAbcEOXftkID9YEGUGVY/s16000/High%20Tension9.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-69204789879148949572023-11-27T14:27:00.002+00:002023-11-27T18:24:05.901+00:00Dark Winds: Season 1<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmGi_ZZQWzWJZ4K6QSHo6nQBhUJamcMXFPYE6NWYv9-lDJGQyQE8TkXSG3KWoUdXfEYaYRweTQrpn_eDe27cpFGbt9GvFnEvldCpif-t3f3u5PN7bKWGJDoMAejP_7UDCHKc4Y3VodO8vsp9oACxaBHONyKEipgPf4AGp3yrpmELKFTeXTm33kIkxyh08/s636/Dark%20Winds1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="636" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmGi_ZZQWzWJZ4K6QSHo6nQBhUJamcMXFPYE6NWYv9-lDJGQyQE8TkXSG3KWoUdXfEYaYRweTQrpn_eDe27cpFGbt9GvFnEvldCpif-t3f3u5PN7bKWGJDoMAejP_7UDCHKc4Y3VodO8vsp9oACxaBHONyKEipgPf4AGp3yrpmELKFTeXTm33kIkxyh08/w283-h400/Dark%20Winds1.jpg" width="283" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Zahn McClarnon, Kiowa
Gordon, and Jessica Matten</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Creator: Graham Roland</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">261 minutes (15) 2022</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Acorn Blu-ray <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>8/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Steven Hampton</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">“Have you seen any witches in your dreams?”</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This TV mystery is derived, partly, from Errol Morris’
movie </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">The Dark Wind</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1991), which starred
Lou Diamond Phillips and Fred Ward. Graham Roland’s excellent spin-off delivers
franchised revisionism, adapted from Tony Hillerman’s novels, efficiently combining
weird (modern-) western tropes, with a character-study focus that’s very like the
crime dramas of Nic Pizzolatto’s gothic styled anthology show, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">True Detective</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (2014). </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmbrDngV54y6H6iPQPr7cSaczh-nekGjv4nJjcti8MHfLgVvPgZ_JlwN3R3Alr6FGU9wdPoLrhxVLhJXhJCzb7Ud-GEsBhhH3lUV2_zHYIESSpUTPsG6fOlNHGz46HY7WAQ_SdpinhogKZx022Nr-xYvyaihJUW6A9mko5aHZbL4s3MBTrzpZHjKTMy8Q/s500/Dark%20Winds2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="285" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmbrDngV54y6H6iPQPr7cSaczh-nekGjv4nJjcti8MHfLgVvPgZ_JlwN3R3Alr6FGU9wdPoLrhxVLhJXhJCzb7Ud-GEsBhhH3lUV2_zHYIESSpUTPsG6fOlNHGz46HY7WAQ_SdpinhogKZx022Nr-xYvyaihJUW6A9mko5aHZbL4s3MBTrzpZHjKTMy8Q/s16000/Dark%20Winds2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Despite being set in the 1970s, like the original books, it’s
a lively updated scenario, with solid production values. Armed robbers using a helicopter are tracked but lost at Monument Valley, on the Navajo reservation,
where native folklore traditions and the social pressures of tribal policing mix
into an uneasy balance that's very unlike the themes of Lone Ranger and Tonto. Lieutenant
Joe Leaphorn (<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Zahn McClarnon),</span> meets
new deputy Jim Chee (<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Kiowa Gordon), and
there’s workplace displacement friction, but some romantic attraction, between
Chee and </span>Sergeant Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten). These local
cops are insulted when a ‘motel murders’ case - linked to activists of the
Buffalo Society, is rudely taken over by FBI agents. Plenty of regional Diné
dialogue helps to forge the cultural authenticity, and historical heritage, of
many scenes on seemingly haunted landscapes, in a ‘twilight zone’ where spooky
wisdom appears linked to freaky weather.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqyg6N5kd64j07zTZEgO2tOoTISRDwW1M9IuFb9coAGmgw82GJCWWnni3eA95kuf4UA9Y4k5-DThWN02XUgjAqwqzPuQSSkWMgfQOiA2DlFtz0IRhe72xePKeKuV0u38tTD898b3omYtsa2q0rOkm-3uz-AQwQaJCjacWPPwkikor4FBpec2avoDj_Oh8/s500/Dark%20Winds3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="272" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqyg6N5kd64j07zTZEgO2tOoTISRDwW1M9IuFb9coAGmgw82GJCWWnni3eA95kuf4UA9Y4k5-DThWN02XUgjAqwqzPuQSSkWMgfQOiA2DlFtz0IRhe72xePKeKuV0u38tTD898b3omYtsa2q0rOkm-3uz-AQwQaJCjacWPPwkikor4FBpec2avoDj_Oh8/s16000/Dark%20Winds3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">“Remember, what you see and hear in ‘ceremony’, stays in
ceremony.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ywJrZBZS773WagaCiJWwuReiWnwes2s_b3joAczz15nZHCD0Uk7Uv-Y3c5bk8cLxULUDogS0B6BYyUAm0jTtOKgTbG-pYF2uKGkNcqRSa32PNGA8PAa1bbfbhNpk8ROJYENbTCr2C0EuxfcleSmOzK-VFeIVG5kHhJ55grAnqqiFA6w2q6MtQNBelIE/s500/Dark%20Winds4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ywJrZBZS773WagaCiJWwuReiWnwes2s_b3joAczz15nZHCD0Uk7Uv-Y3c5bk8cLxULUDogS0B6BYyUAm0jTtOKgTbG-pYF2uKGkNcqRSa32PNGA8PAa1bbfbhNpk8ROJYENbTCr2C0EuxfcleSmOzK-VFeIVG5kHhJ55grAnqqiFA6w2q6MtQNBelIE/s16000/Dark%20Winds4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Ethnic horror movies like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Nightwing</i> (1979), and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Manitou</i> (1978), can easily be seen as laying the foundations for this
sophisticated scripting about an often neglected ‘secret’ world. Everything’s
connected like theft and corruption, violence and 'black magic', family feuds and
land-owners’ rights. There are no clear-cut heroes and villains, partly because
tragedy and brutality are eventually revealed on both deceptive sides of
survival choices, lacking profit motives or any justice. Providing most of the
comic-relief, Rainn Wilson plays a car-salesman. The show didn’t need this
crude level of clown-humour, but ‘Devoted Dan’ does embody some cynicism about religious ignorance and a white-man’s casual disregard of the indigenous American
people, that fits - however clumsily - into this endlessly fascinating era. </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhdKGLMT3wyOsiPvMyJFW6sitvamVSYvtjXyvVmdkCCDWbJFKbpvag6AeD1rmlj1_2YrhXJei6ht9WbjKv2qlbXqY0ytV3vMvCns2_iCU3FE3oJAF5DksJ3-eVgIBpR96m4B1RhvpjSvWj__ipFnmfQL0g4g-G_8_K5BJXGWIibHYPlwJjgPnCBCfDRqU/s500/Dark%20Winds5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="287" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhdKGLMT3wyOsiPvMyJFW6sitvamVSYvtjXyvVmdkCCDWbJFKbpvag6AeD1rmlj1_2YrhXJei6ht9WbjKv2qlbXqY0ytV3vMvCns2_iCU3FE3oJAF5DksJ3-eVgIBpR96m4B1RhvpjSvWj__ipFnmfQL0g4g-G_8_K5BJXGWIibHYPlwJjgPnCBCfDRqU/s16000/Dark%20Winds5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Disc 2 extras:</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Behind-the-scenes featurette <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Show Me More</i> (32 mins.) includes exec. producers George R.R. Martin
and Robert Redford. </span></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-36239992646606315322023-10-25T11:01:00.000+01:002023-10-25T11:01:29.612+01:00Ginger Snaps trilogy<p><span style="font-family: Verdana, "sans-serif";"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8fQyBFbBiNl0X6gfU1IVgYiU9rfSybxa6l5piCo1uQf65NhQp4eplLFhQT-gfJDWOsDivL0szGF2o4WecIJc0POk26oKreH7ykxiuspmYH5OaTiL2EwYpwYP-IuGiDH8Ao9k_kah_cg6ngrn5ydKlbyRSY_Ja0UYMiLe7S4MQViZx08xS2kROXnUP6Kk/s511/gingers01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="511" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8fQyBFbBiNl0X6gfU1IVgYiU9rfSybxa6l5piCo1uQf65NhQp4eplLFhQT-gfJDWOsDivL0szGF2o4WecIJc0POk26oKreH7ykxiuspmYH5OaTiL2EwYpwYP-IuGiDH8Ao9k_kah_cg6ngrn5ydKlbyRSY_Ja0UYMiLe7S4MQViZx08xS2kROXnUP6Kk/w313-h400/gingers01.jpg" width="313" /></a></b></div><b><span style="font-size: large;">Ginger Snaps</span></b><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Katharine Isabelle, Emily Perkins, and Mimi
Rogers</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: John Fawcett </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">108 minutes (18) 2000 </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight Blu-ray box-set <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>9/10</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Steven Hampton</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released
30th October]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>The Howling</i> meets <i>Carrie</i> with extra weirdness. Socially
inept, desperately unhappy, and late starting menstruation, the Fitzgerald
sisters, Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) and Brigitte (Emily Perkins), sulk their
way through dreary schooldays, and worry throughout lonely nights. They can’t
fit in, so they don’t even bother trying - preferring instead to stage an
alarmingly proficient series of fake death scenes (their photo evidence of
which makes up a compelling backdrop for the opening credits), as an
appallingly ghoulish hobby to shock parents, teachers, and terrify neighbours.
And, as a predictable side effect, winning them fleeting classroom kudos for
dark-side cool.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikww5elQB8-ErAISVnTOeZqQAVs5xUR2pWoUaXdzDqBhD_xXlrKZrpYe8w1sjJrk5OIMSmyVgwmX-VmwGUKCwePUfpEBddwuZPcpaYhUouH60kR8hrYNuWRPfzutQ931P9_snQr2k563TcL9FOfs2-D6ehkb-yOTL4OYXTES2hyphenhyphenTZ-jMqoBwv8rvMEajk/s500/gingers02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><img border="0" data-original-height="301" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikww5elQB8-ErAISVnTOeZqQAVs5xUR2pWoUaXdzDqBhD_xXlrKZrpYe8w1sjJrk5OIMSmyVgwmX-VmwGUKCwePUfpEBddwuZPcpaYhUouH60kR8hrYNuWRPfzutQ931P9_snQr2k563TcL9FOfs2-D6ehkb-yOTL4OYXTES2hyphenhyphenTZ-jMqoBwv8rvMEajk/s16000/gingers02.jpg" /></span></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">While
the Goth girls are out at night plotting mischief, Ginger is bitten by a werewolf,
and has her first period. Following the accidental death of a girl from their
school, the sisters’ close relationship is threatened by Ginger’s animal
sexuality, Brigitte’s concern for her sibling’s hormonal trauma (interpreted by
the older girl as jealousy), and the frequent appearance of yet more blood.
Before the next full Moon, Brigitte realises she must find a cure for the
ferocity growing in Ginger, or many people will die. She gets help from a young
gardener, who suggests a herbal remedy for the girl’s lycanthrope disorder, but
even seemingly clueless mum, Pamela (Mimi Rogers), senses that for Ginger,
there’s no going back.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvp4jZxo_vfVltiSU7XUzaTkBcGCVqrSuV_iPweML53-ut52xr8apE-_WGi3rx5DE8aswCvtvgoXfcURxPnIcQqVBbhf8XGNFlukrfkjWPtzs4aooYG00axQncK7RtqBlnpCBoowyCPJFGaCDLHHR6tqarLICVtANHRrxg4P_mO0eSSX-1eExS168lYUg/s500/gingers03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvp4jZxo_vfVltiSU7XUzaTkBcGCVqrSuV_iPweML53-ut52xr8apE-_WGi3rx5DE8aswCvtvgoXfcURxPnIcQqVBbhf8XGNFlukrfkjWPtzs4aooYG00axQncK7RtqBlnpCBoowyCPJFGaCDLHHR6tqarLICVtANHRrxg4P_mO0eSSX-1eExS168lYUg/s16000/gingers03.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Among
the details of this clever re-interpretation of werewolf lore there’s a focus
on the growing of a dog tail, prior to the main transformation scene of
infected teen into ginger-wolf. This permits a narrative that dwells on genre
themes of gender roles and bestiality, and the sort of burgeoning sexual
perversity evident in Schrader’s remake of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cat
People</i> (1982), with signifiers of what critic Barbara Creed has called ‘the
monstrous feminine’. Not to mention indirect references to venereal disease (as
when Ginger’s sexual partner is horrified to find blood in his urine), incurable
cancer, and, the HIV virus. Every excuse for the lurid spilling of blood is
fully explored until the body-horrors establish a narrative trajectory leading
to poetic tragedy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0KsWM6kfzFMt0VrsnBfUbJmT99H4aUCbtVT26ZBPdK9TR1ftDSnhDMOf-u_qGITfo_kY3ppsqKzfwKvKLpyqvBY7VddrNrTzuNFdDMCo3LOflyuLLEoJop0WlbhHXHXgEhFpXHloIzUIOmaRawN4_aJDtykJlQhhyg3q7WRt-i_m936DY7Pjm4ao7AGM/s500/gingers04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="309" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0KsWM6kfzFMt0VrsnBfUbJmT99H4aUCbtVT26ZBPdK9TR1ftDSnhDMOf-u_qGITfo_kY3ppsqKzfwKvKLpyqvBY7VddrNrTzuNFdDMCo3LOflyuLLEoJop0WlbhHXHXgEhFpXHloIzUIOmaRawN4_aJDtykJlQhhyg3q7WRt-i_m936DY7Pjm4ao7AGM/s16000/gingers04.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Despite
the red stuff that runs, drips, and splatters everywhere, <b>Ginger Snaps</b> (as its title hints) is a black-comedy flush with an understanding
of common teenage unease, misery, and stress. DIY body-piercing for Ginger to
get a navel ring, is a startling and exceedingly witty update of the usual
silver bullet cure for werewolf bites, and further demonstrates the high
standard of inventiveness here, for which director John Fawcett, screen-writer
Karen Walton, and the young stars, deserve much praise. Although this is
letdown during the climactic scenes, by a modest production budget, when clear
views of a wholly unconvincing monster’s attack introduce an unwelcome element
of pure cartoon over-extension to the action, <i>Ginger Snaps</i> is an excellent horror thriller, with proof of a brave
and lively intelligence at work beneath the visceral surface.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZln8SR3gv2Q2Ii2QdzvGcqzijfnoFiJHB8n_lf9Dlhvt8pVDc6joPOvSn7iDvUi_KSbPHy67qVtmLxicaovPC0nHJQZxxqJ6-ICGzbIOz7MyulII1WdWtsrr7CeQ4qpZ4dQKWLS1veJ5p-2Hg7woBW98uTY2IkSiLdwXDbzvQM6eemv6fPJLvVNx0rbY/s500/gingers05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="327" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZln8SR3gv2Q2Ii2QdzvGcqzijfnoFiJHB8n_lf9Dlhvt8pVDc6joPOvSn7iDvUi_KSbPHy67qVtmLxicaovPC0nHJQZxxqJ6-ICGzbIOz7MyulII1WdWtsrr7CeQ4qpZ4dQKWLS1veJ5p-2Hg7woBW98uTY2IkSiLdwXDbzvQM6eemv6fPJLvVNx0rbY/s16000/gingers05.jpg" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ginger Snaps: Unleashed</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast:
Emily Perkins, Tatiana Maslany, and Katherine Isabelle<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director:
Brett Sullivan</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">94
minutes (18) 2004</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating:
<b>9/10</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review
by Debbie Moon </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After
the events of </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Ginger Sna</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">ps, surviving
sister Brigitte is struggling to find a way to overcome her werewolf nature,
while on the run from another of her kind. When she takes an overdose of her
dangerous ‘cure’, Brigitte’s sent to a drug rehab project in an otherwise
abandoned hospital. Teaming up with a pre-teen named Ghost, who’s obsessed with
horror comics and soon works out what the new girl’s problem is, she has to
escape before the change happens - or, indeed, her pursuer starts claiming
innocent victims. But Brigitte may be in even more danger from an unexpected
source...</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPqnC8oW1_9sYEAHyPJpYaFXU-uvq5uBYPRPEXzliNpIWfQkqnLxEZpcq-hstRVU7UAgS3s7y4ZA7G0UJDAfYWvKn9BxoMChdqVoZ9tBiiHK0umjgi6rf_QG8WiauFHb2m4X7i5mwjUxDGZzoDCFWKJwMJ9PGfWxRL7bstMCVRCTlhwhCY6Q1IXRnfNio/s500/gingers06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="287" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPqnC8oW1_9sYEAHyPJpYaFXU-uvq5uBYPRPEXzliNpIWfQkqnLxEZpcq-hstRVU7UAgS3s7y4ZA7G0UJDAfYWvKn9BxoMChdqVoZ9tBiiHK0umjgi6rf_QG8WiauFHb2m4X7i5mwjUxDGZzoDCFWKJwMJ9PGfWxRL7bstMCVRCTlhwhCY6Q1IXRnfNio/s16000/gingers06.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This
fantastic sequel to a low-budget hit, <b>Ginger
Snaps 2: Unleashed</b> has all the twisted charms of the original - with genuine
shocks and thrills, a dry and disaffected wit, and a sharp eye for the horrors
of being a teenager. The hospital setting, a morass of teen bullies,
exploitative staff, and a well-meaning mother figure who just can’t accept the
real problem, puts a new slant on proceedings, and Megan Martin’s ingenious
script keeps up the tension and reserves some terrific shocks for the final
reel. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYiyERJYEVCzD6hJby_ibkY9jRdBG9X-ypE_Uw3-UHYClBEf8iTRoZ3AdJnNjJnMTBMMZfhaZBMM1dhZdafexykwg2ifKE0huzkJ0Qh2wLwgLeIMl8ANCLpbZkYNc7SkYRwCToouu95lm8JlUMa46VemAg-WU6508u2lqgfjBZvRECxahGSWH9wwN9PH4/s500/gingers07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="257" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYiyERJYEVCzD6hJby_ibkY9jRdBG9X-ypE_Uw3-UHYClBEf8iTRoZ3AdJnNjJnMTBMMZfhaZBMM1dhZdafexykwg2ifKE0huzkJ0Qh2wLwgLeIMl8ANCLpbZkYNc7SkYRwCToouu95lm8JlUMa46VemAg-WU6508u2lqgfjBZvRECxahGSWH9wwN9PH4/s16000/gingers07.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Emily
Perkins gives another gripping performance as the haunted Brigitte, fighting
for her life, but it’s no insult to her to observe that the breakout
performance is young Tatiana Maslany’s as Ghost, possibly the world’s most
disturbed pre-teen. Sharp, shocking and dryly amusing, <i>Ginger Snaps 2</i> is that rare thing - a truly great horror sequel.
With another movie soon to follow, catch up while you can.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ginger Snaps Back:
The Beginning</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast:
Katherine Isabelle, Emily Perkins, and Nathaniel Arcand</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director:
Grant Harvey</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">91
minutes (18) 2004</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating:
<b>8/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review
by Alasdair Stuart</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Ginger Snaps</i> is widely regarded
as one of the best, and last, of the postmodern teen-horror subgenre made so
famous by Kevin Williamson and Wes Craven’s <i>Scream</i>
trilogy. Its blacker than black comedy, acerbic wit and fervent, almost manic
bond between its main characters has garnered the film a legion of fans and two
follow-ups, filmed back to back.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">However,
<b>Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning</b> is
more of a prequel than a sequel and is a genuinely unusual direction to take this
franchise. For a start, it’s set in 18th century Canada at an outpost under
siege from a legion of werewolves. Brigitte and Ginger are also there, albeit
this time as the daughters of an explorer who drowned when their boat was
overturned. As the film begins, they’re alone, on horseback, in the middle of
nowhere. They’re cold, frightened and have no one to rely on but each other.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJhNkaI8wJqnghEX8yxkBV9ugHXlDLG4TgZMOzFPj9i7i_cY8tU8WJ9aNkaq3lqnKxkRTudT1_XdM8HVUHgi1c-rli7YAmBMlA43J_y3c6xwFX62_STzhKsUIODd_6V56z_JjQNqh7wS6YfLY4hqq2B64h7KTu4kCpuiN0YOzUZJ8Q4BH93fiesQJd9f0/s500/gingers08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="263" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJhNkaI8wJqnghEX8yxkBV9ugHXlDLG4TgZMOzFPj9i7i_cY8tU8WJ9aNkaq3lqnKxkRTudT1_XdM8HVUHgi1c-rli7YAmBMlA43J_y3c6xwFX62_STzhKsUIODd_6V56z_JjQNqh7wS6YfLY4hqq2B64h7KTu4kCpuiN0YOzUZJ8Q4BH93fiesQJd9f0/s16000/gingers08.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This
neatly brings the incredibly close relationship between the two in the previous
movies into a whole new light. Brigitte and Ginger are utterly co-dependent due
to the terrible situation they find themselves in and as a result, they find
themselves pushed into increasingly drastic courses of action. As the
inhabitants of the fort turn on one another, and finally them, the sisters find
that the only people they can rely on are each other.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This
very close, and slightly disturbing, relationship is beautifully drawn and
played by Katherine Isabelle and Emily Perkins. Isabelle is hugely impressive
as the haunted, frantic young woman struggling to keep her sister alive and
herself human whilst Perkins, given the quieter role, is if anything more
unsettling. There’s fervour to this incarnation of Brigitte that gives every
scene she has a real sense of tension. Whilst Ginger may be the physically more
comfortable one, it’s Brigitte whose refusal to back down and absolute refusal
to abandon her sister who is ultimately responsible for some of the film’s most
disturbing moments.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMhjpLbRT5aP2DXX9xG-ZIlR6BfquVi2-sI_r3ZScvkE6Z3P287pAtRAcgAcoE5t3qsxE05N3vueQqaje8IsQXnrUyULLTtvYyBMIw8SpeVkUJzWGHCxce6iknlhDNGjV2tSVLATqXONgS6vqzbglXjX_rtsQfO-N3tyjL-1F5IKzlaADx6TjmCkCB4U/s500/gingers09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="307" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMhjpLbRT5aP2DXX9xG-ZIlR6BfquVi2-sI_r3ZScvkE6Z3P287pAtRAcgAcoE5t3qsxE05N3vueQqaje8IsQXnrUyULLTtvYyBMIw8SpeVkUJzWGHCxce6iknlhDNGjV2tSVLATqXONgS6vqzbglXjX_rtsQfO-N3tyjL-1F5IKzlaADx6TjmCkCB4U/s16000/gingers09.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With
two performances of this strength at its centre, the rest of the film
inevitably falls a little by the wayside. The inhabitants of the outpost are
drawn for the most part from stock, whether the lecherous soldier played by
J.R. Bourne, or Hugh Dillon’s fire-and-brimstone preacher. Only Tom McCamus’ Rowlands and Nathaniel Arcand’s Hunter are standouts. The first, the
owner of the settlement, is a great character whose dark secret propels most of
the film along. Superficially, he’s the traditional leader, a physically adept
and resolutely fair man who in a simpler film would be the hero. Here though he’s
far more than that, alternately an ally and enemy to the girls adding another
element of chaos to an already unpredictable film. Arcand’s Hunter is much the
same, one of the only people who seems able to come and go as he pleases and
who never quite chooses a side. He truly comes into his own in the last 20
minutes, as does McCamus in fact, and their performances are at least as strong
as the two female leads.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFwsxPZSkkBWcOcwnek6fX3qJfTmr6dCtuZF202jM_1DHd8JJymCoXVnoV5gASn7iFIrai0H0FBgeUrZRpb1q8pE5qz3bXcETPVQ1nZNJCETe3NRBy6GauOTgyiGUcyed02AUDZkt3WfQNQXhP3g7l246yU1wo44AITx_uB5vEUmYOGJp_eIFOvRB8QM/s500/gingers11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFwsxPZSkkBWcOcwnek6fX3qJfTmr6dCtuZF202jM_1DHd8JJymCoXVnoV5gASn7iFIrai0H0FBgeUrZRpb1q8pE5qz3bXcETPVQ1nZNJCETe3NRBy6GauOTgyiGUcyed02AUDZkt3WfQNQXhP3g7l246yU1wo44AITx_uB5vEUmYOGJp_eIFOvRB8QM/s16000/gingers11.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">What
really impresses here though is the script. There’s an overwhelming sense of
doom to the whole affair as the girls’ actions echo those they took in the
earlier films. Even their love for one another becomes a dark, untrustworthy
thing, bringing as much pain down on them as it eases. Most importantly though,
the fact that the same actresses are playing earlier incarnations of the girls
drives home the central idea of inevitability beautifully, as well as tying
Ginger and Brigitte neatly into the history of the area.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">All
in all, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Ginger Snaps Back</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> is an
intelligent, unusual and remarkably dark prequel. It maintains the same grim
humour of the first film and expands on its themes in an unexpected and highly
effective way. If only more horror trilogies were this good.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3E-yySpo6WWuHbLo_sfWtk0k1vEaoFmtljL6yGC8C6Rm4Kb-D99BEWxhwtZwM47CnJcQsW-rrfmhOXXnWxQQWmJ_KvQhoj9GAiPX6uyMcN7K8WWb64LmMQU6si7PQoqSBdS6wQEHxVZItYvMGkrjmIksbpfpKM1aieeiXFW3fY-r1nudrZi9qzRuvtM/s500/gingers10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3E-yySpo6WWuHbLo_sfWtk0k1vEaoFmtljL6yGC8C6Rm4Kb-D99BEWxhwtZwM47CnJcQsW-rrfmhOXXnWxQQWmJ_KvQhoj9GAiPX6uyMcN7K8WWb64LmMQU6si7PQoqSBdS6wQEHxVZItYvMGkrjmIksbpfpKM1aieeiXFW3fY-r1nudrZi9qzRuvtM/s16000/gingers10.jpg" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><u>Extras</u>:
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>GINGER SNAPS</b> -</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Mary Beth McAndrews and Terry Mesnard</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with director John Fawcett<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with writer Karen Walton<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Canadian Uncanny</i> - Stacey Abbott on
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ginger Snaps</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Blood Red Moon</i> - interview with John
Fawcett<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What Are You
Wereing?</i>
- interview with producer Steve Hoban<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Art Of Horror</i> - interview with storyboard
artist Vincenzo Natali<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Featurettes:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Ginger Snaps</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">: Blood, Teeth And
Fur</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Growing
Pains</i>: Puberty in Horror Films</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
Making of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ginger Snaps</i></span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast
auditions and rehearsals<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Deleted
scenes with optional director and writer commentaries<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Production
design Work<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Creation
of the Beast<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trailers
and TV Spots</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>GINGER SNAPS UNLEASHED</b> –<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with director Brett Sullivan</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Girl,
Interrupted</i> - interview with Brett Sullivan</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>The
Bloody Lunar Cycle</i> - interview with writer Megan Martin</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Behind
the scenes</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Deleted
scenes with optional director’s commentary</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Audition
tapes</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Storyboards</span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>GINGER SNAPS BACK: THE BEGINNING</b> - </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by director Grant Harvey</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Snap!</i>
- interview with Grant Harvey<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Girls
on Film</i> - interview with producer Paula Devonshire<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
Making of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ginger Snaps Back</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Deleted
scenes with optional director’s commentary<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Grant
Harvey’s video diaries</span></p><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-69596566468058384562023-10-23T10:22:00.001+01:002023-11-18T13:42:36.525+00:00Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfHZ9gH91RhyphenhypheneoJDb7TlLP5-wTANs-n1uK0c6P0f8l1MaFKTyj5DtW8_AoXAnxgmI39T3f7LciyVbhNj25K6MuNIC3QfQ7yhp9JSzUkvd1gFsLRZs_8r7LLu5fEUwbF3y8bG-c2I3zD0sHZoj7ZKTxx2VyLL-c2qOIIRt6CPdxtcq3d6IFEwQrvz4gvZA/s536/spideyATSV1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfHZ9gH91RhyphenhypheneoJDb7TlLP5-wTANs-n1uK0c6P0f8l1MaFKTyj5DtW8_AoXAnxgmI39T3f7LciyVbhNj25K6MuNIC3QfQ7yhp9JSzUkvd1gFsLRZs_8r7LLu5fEUwbF3y8bG-c2I3zD0sHZoj7ZKTxx2VyLL-c2qOIIRt6CPdxtcq3d6IFEwQrvz4gvZA/w336-h400/spideyATSV1.jpg" width="336" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, and Brian
Tyree Henry</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Directors: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin
K. Thompson</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">140 minutes (PG) 2023 </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">S</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">ony 4K Ultra HD </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>6/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Steven Hampton</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
complexity of alternative worlds in Marvel’s expanding multi-verse means that almost
anyone, at any time, can be Spider-Man... so why aren’t you? Can you stand on ceilings, dangle
from bridges, hop over highways, or jump between city skyscrapers? If there’s a radioactive spider
number ‘42’, perhaps you are supposed to get bitten in this reality of Earth
2023. Emerging from a weirdly trans-dimensional ‘cocoon’ of spoofy super-action,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse</i>
(2018) enabled an older, but still quite familiar, Peter Parker (voiced by Jake
Johnson) to support his own replacement, youngster Miles Morales (voiced by rapper Shameik
Moore), as the NYC neighbourhood’s friendly new kid on the block, gifted with 'the
usual', plus invisibility and ‘Venom’ related energy powers. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx_rAmI8akG1pg_MGSHv5RLOAOqs2kdn98ZUp8VKbLnR5UXrO-ZluIBsTzeHtin4K5hz7vPlylGz_c1F_X_YXcDIYUFMAL0CMG8o6ZgB0njPNhq-_z82P8tsTnr-1hsrquOK9HycbNur_03fvHZc7Qwd-7iDjLkUS4bijRISWlUmQbF47OpxdNvCZFnHU/s500/spideyATSV2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="321" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx_rAmI8akG1pg_MGSHv5RLOAOqs2kdn98ZUp8VKbLnR5UXrO-ZluIBsTzeHtin4K5hz7vPlylGz_c1F_X_YXcDIYUFMAL0CMG8o6ZgB0njPNhq-_z82P8tsTnr-1hsrquOK9HycbNur_03fvHZc7Qwd-7iDjLkUS4bijRISWlUmQbF47OpxdNvCZFnHU/s16000/spideyATSV2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">We
get intros for Spider-Woman, alias Gwen Stacy (voice by Hailee Steinfeld, so good as
Kate Bishop in Marvel TV series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hawkeye</i>),
and other multi-verse Spidey variants, including a b&w Noir (voiced by Nicolas
Cage). Apart from the ‘thwip’ of web-shot and many other sound-effect graphics,
the picture evokes ‘splash pages’ from print-media, like motion-comics artwork
fused with rotoscoped imagery, and split-screen visuals perhaps suggested by
Ang Lee’s HULK (2003). “You got a problem with cartoons?” says Peter Porker,
mutant pig, Spider-Ham. Well, yes... When any supposedly caricatured characters
are hardly original ideas, there’s only mild amusement, instead of clever
jokes, to be derived from their particular TV-grade sit-com dialogue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHCXKiEu6RiUpEHQrWm447vHkeTQXApYuI5nyBUV5ZU8bkwQi2pSs7wc4MtBKQiwfLHWga7PM6Te4uZX5aqvXJI4cMiLy-tU4QBHpdHy28619ozbOPMrO1oZvsdPuj9YpQ4anQ-7dhMDqgH3OGr2NogjQffIOMe3smE2_TTbLOpKqi-ddHUaLYIYytMQo/s500/spideyATSV3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="426" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHCXKiEu6RiUpEHQrWm447vHkeTQXApYuI5nyBUV5ZU8bkwQi2pSs7wc4MtBKQiwfLHWga7PM6Te4uZX5aqvXJI4cMiLy-tU4QBHpdHy28619ozbOPMrO1oZvsdPuj9YpQ4anQ-7dhMDqgH3OGr2NogjQffIOMe3smE2_TTbLOpKqi-ddHUaLYIYytMQo/s16000/spideyATSV3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Irreverence
blends with poignancy, sometimes skilfully but often very clumsily, especially
when the movie-makers are determined to be quite daft about sci-fi possibilities or
superheroes’ moral dilemmas. Sadly, meta-fictional concepts are not culturally
progressive story-telling, not when their collective impact on this century’s 'Golden Age of
Superhero Cinema' is mainly just obvious whimsy and weakly satirical humour.
Experimenting with animation techniques, although it's always fascinating to see,
can be awkward to watch if the writing team failed to establish any boundaries
or solid limitations on keenly creative artistry. So, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Into The Spider-Verse</i> felt like a breathless pursuit of the
unknown, with exhilarating daredevil thrills intact, but with both feet in the
clouds while its head slams into the pavement. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj18vFVxGTAXfPMYqy5G_Hv2iOEogmIPsi2tPUO8EPeM0Vqs4an9pBdhwWbhMmSg6GX1mfyv1kEMxq0yt1GJZjh1v58XdauK0LZLGMP4KEx9h3UDzs3tF9nNKrM_ms7wWx4mjdrc3MM7zIQx7ntE2Nc-u4aOrpMItL_D8w0xTL8UF1uaJQIwVEIqYeBYGo/s500/spideyATSV4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="209" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj18vFVxGTAXfPMYqy5G_Hv2iOEogmIPsi2tPUO8EPeM0Vqs4an9pBdhwWbhMmSg6GX1mfyv1kEMxq0yt1GJZjh1v58XdauK0LZLGMP4KEx9h3UDzs3tF9nNKrM_ms7wWx4mjdrc3MM7zIQx7ntE2Nc-u4aOrpMItL_D8w0xTL8UF1uaJQIwVEIqYeBYGo/s16000/spideyATSV4.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">After
the multi-verse development in live-action movie </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Spider-Man: No Way Home</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (2021), this animated sequel, </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse</b><span style="font-family: verdana;">
(2023), has fresh inputs resulting in yet another hectic and dizzying spectacle
that almost eclipses Marvel’s meta/ multi-verse spin-off stories in their animated
series</span><i style="font-family: verdana;"> What If..?</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">. Now, ‘Spider-Gwen’
meets Miguel (Oscar Isaac, of Marvel’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Moon
Knight</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> show), a time-travelling, humourless ninja-vampire spider-hunk from
2099, where he leads the Spider-Society protecting the canon events of a
tangled timeline of multi-verse connections. Here's in-jokes about a Peter Parker,
Spider-dad, whose Spider-baby feels like a Disney import. There’s also a Spider-Punk,
of course, to play the anti-establishment rebel who’s like a bad influence upon
sundry heroes. Miles (remember him?) breaks away from their conservative traditions but risks
destroying the webs of coincidence that holds the sprawling ‘cosmos’ of arachnid-champions
together. His loner efforts, under the mask, appear pointless while a faceless,
pre-determined fate unfolds.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9QDQ4nXKRwpdoi-k771u1LY3ayyLuiJjwDCG2JIIce3lo-kLMZBVRGaj4egtHPyPuqVH_3UwPDvnjJxS1VivdcegOs1aglvqAKCAYlDiTbswNJlPDAM3YMV0wlqplSB6AdyoomKlHZ27bB9UKcVejEPYVEBFfW6lLJ7HGQjdrgkd4B1fZLziirdIMxQ/s500/spideyATSV5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="226" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9QDQ4nXKRwpdoi-k771u1LY3ayyLuiJjwDCG2JIIce3lo-kLMZBVRGaj4egtHPyPuqVH_3UwPDvnjJxS1VivdcegOs1aglvqAKCAYlDiTbswNJlPDAM3YMV0wlqplSB6AdyoomKlHZ27bB9UKcVejEPYVEBFfW6lLJ7HGQjdrgkd4B1fZLziirdIMxQ/s16000/spideyATSV5.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Mopey
and slightly dopey soap-opera stuff about relationships always slows the pace
to a crawl, even when climbing walls. For live-action movies, good actors might
bring a sense of emotional depth or dramatic subtleties to some of those pivotal
scenes of motivational appeal, but cartoonish characters generally fail, except
in the rare animated productions that strive for genuine photo-realism (like
Zemeckis’ </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Beowulf</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, Spielberg’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Tintin</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, or any of </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Final Fantasy</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> franchised movies).</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxMniGQnEkCjEKqLohbc_o6VJCK8HgWdz8RP_Xe__EbXkEfOXDav8Oc4bCvTsZInMQvWFnN3M1d1C6eqB4J9irv5WtVMrp8ukmK4iL1ac7waP2gseRxOE8ClaujxH1iFF_W5wmAEKdYOHdU_oRc-it6mY617Yx7O_iE9QJpSRGXFPzik0m_J7ocvt0Xl8/s500/spideyATSV7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="226" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxMniGQnEkCjEKqLohbc_o6VJCK8HgWdz8RP_Xe__EbXkEfOXDav8Oc4bCvTsZInMQvWFnN3M1d1C6eqB4J9irv5WtVMrp8ukmK4iL1ac7waP2gseRxOE8ClaujxH1iFF_W5wmAEKdYOHdU_oRc-it6mY617Yx7O_iE9QJpSRGXFPzik0m_J7ocvt0Xl8/s16000/spideyATSV7.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Because of humour’s profound associations
with failure, cool comedy is always the hardest element to do, or get just
right, with any charm or genuine wit. The lack of any consistent style or
quality for numerous animated action-sequences means this distractingly frantic
tempo can eventually detract from audience involvement in the story-telling
verve. Super-villain the Spot was a scientist transformed into a malevolent force
threatening everyone concerned. Futurism during the later 2099 scenes is notable for
its space-elevator, and a Spidey matrix with techie avatars. The cliff-hanger
ending of <i>Across The Spider-Verse</i> provides a twisty finale. Trilogy closer ‘Spider-Man: Beyond The
Spider-Verse’ is reportedly now in development.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMPPZpQ1wpDRxqYrIA18ngWQIGQg2_sYsEzpb3xxcSF7-O41yuUpmetTnQMWqRubGF6c_RJTifx0vZCZvgNZF-o4Kok3WLebSwBHCNDsIo0Zg9zUySqvSlL7fH_OccMwtPIhCEAQvh79res4RJ6NWh7AQ3TuDXOmL-EXWifVwAm3IXf18piirAEFxdSf0/s500/spideyATSV6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="222" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMPPZpQ1wpDRxqYrIA18ngWQIGQg2_sYsEzpb3xxcSF7-O41yuUpmetTnQMWqRubGF6c_RJTifx0vZCZvgNZF-o4Kok3WLebSwBHCNDsIo0Zg9zUySqvSlL7fH_OccMwtPIhCEAQvh79res4RJ6NWh7AQ3TuDXOmL-EXWifVwAm3IXf18piirAEFxdSf0/s16000/spideyATSV6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Blu-ray
extras:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Commentary
track</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Featurettes
include:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Creating
the Ultimate Spider-Man movie </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">“I’mma
Do My Own Thing” Inter-dimensional Destiny</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Raising
A Hero</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Across
The Worlds: Designing New Dimensions</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Designing
Spiders and Spots</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Across
The Comics-verse</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Your
Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Cast </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Obscure
Spiders and Easter Eggs </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Scratches,
Score, and the Music of the Multi-verse</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Escape
From Spider-Society</span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Deleted scenes</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">- Music videos</span></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-36486036521896272722023-09-07T08:09:00.004+01:002023-09-07T15:44:01.587+01:00Crimes Of The Future<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiTufa6hSp2_FTG8Iye4sZ6hRMFjwmbzWzxOnU0X-pYcfb6DvxO4BTZhoPAy3kTshYdDCWmU6kdC9ksd_933-qDT7myemk3KEFaTGEDDp4IBfxc-um7vmme8ZO4Wd08fnQnDhZrGZhPHZ5m9bLX88n2U7btWmsxeVi2EkHFF8qfmIdnjh49amSqIXWBDg/s571/crimes%20of%20the%20future1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiTufa6hSp2_FTG8Iye4sZ6hRMFjwmbzWzxOnU0X-pYcfb6DvxO4BTZhoPAy3kTshYdDCWmU6kdC9ksd_933-qDT7myemk3KEFaTGEDDp4IBfxc-um7vmme8ZO4Wd08fnQnDhZrGZhPHZ5m9bLX88n2U7btWmsxeVi2EkHFF8qfmIdnjh49amSqIXWBDg/w315-h400/crimes%20of%20the%20future1.jpg" width="315" /></a></div>Cast: <span style="font-family: verdana;">Viggo Mortensen, Lea Seydoux, and Kristen
Stewart</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: David Cronenberg</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">107 minutes (18) 2022 </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight 4K Ultra HD</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>9/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released
11th September]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">With
a title recycled from Cronenberg’s own short feature of 1970, this quite astonishing futuristic horror boldly re-mixes diverse concepts and themes from the
Canadian auteur’s career highlights, and also delivers an endlessly fascinating celebration
of intelligent science fictional tropes, explored at levels of creativity that
no other genre director can ever match today. Although it’s an ambitiously
original and mysterious drama, </span><b style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://pigasuspress.blogspot.com/2022/09/long-live-new-weirdo.html" target="_blank">Crimes Of The Future</a></b><span style="font-family: verdana;"> nevertheless often plays like a supremely effective and valuable
summation of signature 'Cronenberger' works, but without once feeling even slightly derivative.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWBzfUJT0UHtrIN_nmAILgltP899n-eQg2nr1_k6dN54RseKRNABAn5VYIF14CQSvyPdgAbab8iJ83LAR48j3KtN42i_wO36G1Bf8krJ226L9Jr3B2aUgjS-S2-Qg3ZdjxyTaZ7ycA08SWAo3PSbhYuhnEc3i4Ghxcs9bk2admIKTMF1khcqUDyuyej4A/s500/crimes%20of%20the%20future2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWBzfUJT0UHtrIN_nmAILgltP899n-eQg2nr1_k6dN54RseKRNABAn5VYIF14CQSvyPdgAbab8iJ83LAR48j3KtN42i_wO36G1Bf8krJ226L9Jr3B2aUgjS-S2-Qg3ZdjxyTaZ7ycA08SWAo3PSbhYuhnEc3i4Ghxcs9bk2admIKTMF1khcqUDyuyej4A/s16000/crimes%20of%20the%20future2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Essentially,
a romanticised story about accelerated “evolution and performance-art” COTF <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>explores how everything is </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">engagingly</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">connected in an alternative universe. Not only the mind and the body with tech, but
disaster politics and a grotesquely beautiful culture, so this might well be
the most physically intimate, and wholly definitive post-cyberpunk movie. Shot on Greek
locations, the decayed backdrop textures are powerful visually, atmospherically,
and metaphorically, like unfinished business for this pioneer of bio-shockers. Following
a squelchy series of apocalyptic mutations, pain is extinct. A plastic-eating ‘invented’
boy is murdered by his disturbed mother. Sickly mutant Saul Tenser (Viggo
Mortensen, a regular Cronenberg collaborator on gangster thrillers) sleeps in a
kind of organic cradle that fosters weird hormonal balances while he grows novelty
glands. A secretive government's National Organ Registry tattoos provocative
gene-mods, internally, like “tumours by Picasso”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Hxic3xy_COvmTTPp4Xw2Pkx-i05aEasyBl4ombjJkXbG5mbEHwK7EZ7MsYlXQez8M6HmEEoGgMebgoNhB-S798K-1QOEBhEoRWl-dwagH8YIxLr2XGfq29h_r4VjXWgEUg0eOiTtVJC_esXgex1U50Hs43l1p3ftjpDIOcnkKNmTBFdqciQD7rapPSs/s500/crimes%20of%20the%20future4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Hxic3xy_COvmTTPp4Xw2Pkx-i05aEasyBl4ombjJkXbG5mbEHwK7EZ7MsYlXQez8M6HmEEoGgMebgoNhB-S798K-1QOEBhEoRWl-dwagH8YIxLr2XGfq29h_r4VjXWgEUg0eOiTtVJC_esXgex1U50Hs43l1p3ftjpDIOcnkKNmTBFdqciQD7rapPSs/s16000/crimes%20of%20the%20future4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Former
trauma medic Caprice (Lea Seydoux) gets a bizarre autopsy module for blending
Grand Guignol theatre with sexy operations to control his rebel portfolio donations
for the Inner Beauty Pageant, concerned with something other than just subversive
‘designer cancers’, spawned by new dystopian flesh. ‘Creepy’ fan-girl Timlin (Kristen
Stewart) helps to focus this bio-tech satire from ‘mad doctor’ showmanship of ‘escapist
propaganda’. Suspicious neo-vice cop Cope challenges the legality of surgery
for the icky, tricky and trippy stage act. Here are driller-killers, organ-grinders,
and nightmare strangers, with black comedy, and riffs on superheroes not unlike
Matter-Eater Lad (DC). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZKMwSuGVA5OLto2eoLJNLD-1MEKeg-C7tMAKUjBD5TcS6-uDP-uYYEexLGWStUI-VdEoEVuHngMLghT9M1LfH-akI-Hphn6bfClpGM2lBHFZvkyruFZPCNglVxeTZZ4q6i5xyGZUbdLekMV4cgZT0aS-QI82TWPkz-vp3994lulXru928bxRj4ISeyjI/s500/crimes%20of%20the%20future5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZKMwSuGVA5OLto2eoLJNLD-1MEKeg-C7tMAKUjBD5TcS6-uDP-uYYEexLGWStUI-VdEoEVuHngMLghT9M1LfH-akI-Hphn6bfClpGM2lBHFZvkyruFZPCNglVxeTZZ4q6i5xyGZUbdLekMV4cgZT0aS-QI82TWPkz-vp3994lulXru928bxRj4ISeyjI/s16000/crimes%20of%20the%20future5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Meanwhile,
of course, subtexts abound, including viral violence, crashed climate, a</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">daptation
as primary human solution to any environmental crisis, and plenty of disturbing
scenes to bridge classy Art-house and cult B-movie trends. Cronenberg applies the needles
of cold logic, and liberal warmth, to present industrial-scaled surrealism, and so
create his most explicitly metamorphic character-study since </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">The Fly</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1986). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7BMu2yi6IH0sWMowf1c7sukgFtRt8f7BdhH4UMf1kYxfFWmCubaBjKkfkJ-mRBvryCcr75VH1dAD2odgw9otufqV7n2L__9pEHuuJh_CmfrouwvQ8hWJNWGvMJDZrONIJpbV4Fb5oFfOqpe1XlaZu-XndARF33mvTrl-bs5x2hgcDL1BQnVfYSYJEFNs/s500/crimes%20of%20the%20future6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="262" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7BMu2yi6IH0sWMowf1c7sukgFtRt8f7BdhH4UMf1kYxfFWmCubaBjKkfkJ-mRBvryCcr75VH1dAD2odgw9otufqV7n2L__9pEHuuJh_CmfrouwvQ8hWJNWGvMJDZrONIJpbV4Fb5oFfOqpe1XlaZu-XndARF33mvTrl-bs5x2hgcDL1BQnVfYSYJEFNs/s16000/crimes%20of%20the%20future6.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Disc
extras:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Undeniably A Love Story</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> - interview with David
Cronenberg</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Things Change</i> - interview with
Viggo Mortensen</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Chaos Inside</i> - interview with Lea
Seydoux</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Heat And The
Grime</i>
- interview with Kristen Stewart</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bureau Man</i> - interview with
Don McKellar</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Painkiller</i> - interview with producer
Robert Lantos</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Most Wonderful
Dream</i>
- interview with cinematographer Douglas Koch</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Code Of David</i> - interview with editor
Christopher Donaldson</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">New Flesh, Future
Crimes: The Body And David Cronenberg</i> - video essay by Leigh Singer</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
Making of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Crimes Of The Future</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Caelum Vatnsdal</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Production
design materials</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>The Death Of David Cronenberg </i>(short film)<i> </i></span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyTEnhcx21UauwDiJVRSO-mbgUoSd0Yml86P8xIXfAOrXdgHB7IMuex3aHYXyTPATQhp2CdhLlwFVgB_0YQGKzgX7PcJ2JXhFY--CDUwVOjZLmXG43Ck3vOfH7l3UCRAgse7LbKD6jKRt5dJ_ocPnKy76PPm3CqWEGT0ouhGZ3bH2dBAKMm5x4-Ni69ec/s500/crimes%20of%20the%20future9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="417" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyTEnhcx21UauwDiJVRSO-mbgUoSd0Yml86P8xIXfAOrXdgHB7IMuex3aHYXyTPATQhp2CdhLlwFVgB_0YQGKzgX7PcJ2JXhFY--CDUwVOjZLmXG43Ck3vOfH7l3UCRAgse7LbKD6jKRt5dJ_ocPnKy76PPm3CqWEGT0ouhGZ3bH2dBAKMm5x4-Ni69ec/s16000/crimes%20of%20the%20future9.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-17295792516008476792023-07-21T10:42:00.001+01:002023-07-21T10:42:33.754+01:00Frontier(s)<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTd06MHQYlJ8JkNbdni1YFIwzWEAlioCMxP7cgWYSUfAvoYT3TV6ZGXNNq7OoisQfKXTMGgWdJu8A8pWfC1DdljutVPOaBXnzZqKQ8sQPC4XebpHla2RCZFyOPRDbkh_0Orn6DOs-P1Q1SG4Eg2RqXFkY4uQJnL6bCTPfGlfotI3xBmuKg8XkB2WbqrYY/s581/Frontiers1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTd06MHQYlJ8JkNbdni1YFIwzWEAlioCMxP7cgWYSUfAvoYT3TV6ZGXNNq7OoisQfKXTMGgWdJu8A8pWfC1DdljutVPOaBXnzZqKQ8sQPC4XebpHla2RCZFyOPRDbkh_0Orn6DOs-P1Q1SG4Eg2RqXFkY4uQJnL6bCTPfGlfotI3xBmuKg8XkB2WbqrYY/w310-h400/Frontiers1.jpg" width="310" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Karina Testa, Samuel Le Bihan, and Estelle
Lefebure</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Xavier Gens</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">108 minutes (18) 2007 <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight Blu-ray</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 24th July]</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>8/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Review by Christopher Geary</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">On
the run through Parisian riot hell after a rightwing election victory, a
carload of youths decamp to the countryside, but are waylaid at a motel by a
psycho family of neo-Nazi cannibals, in gore-fest </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">Frontier(s)</b><span style="font-family: verdana;">, the feature debut of writer-director Xavier Gens
(maker of </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Hitman</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">). Yasmine (Karina
Testa) is three months pregnant, which is all that saves her from joining
murdered friends in elitist Von Geisler’s larder of salted cadavers, as these
reclusive holdouts for a ‘master race’ need to expand their (contaminated) gene
pool. Following several rounds of hardcore sadism, there’s an operatic
dinnertime ordeal in store for Yasmine, where the hosts welcome her as their
new leader’s bride.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbtF2a16DI5uNiyRHCUh2xDSKQsZkYHvQwkor5v7zEeSQ3OJnSfy2LwVM0yThyZVhWLEc-s1eHHz8qsOAeTqytI8Egn1Sa6DkH_9dvZeNtDwmm0bXwqcIIlLKo-CZyf5ZDO4jFdxiwHZoz3gY2aZCVJt97AJ1LzsATA7mUdy6fJN-s6jqTFRyAVjS3-Pk/s500/frontiers2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbtF2a16DI5uNiyRHCUh2xDSKQsZkYHvQwkor5v7zEeSQ3OJnSfy2LwVM0yThyZVhWLEc-s1eHHz8qsOAeTqytI8Egn1Sa6DkH_9dvZeNtDwmm0bXwqcIIlLKo-CZyf5ZDO4jFdxiwHZoz3gY2aZCVJt97AJ1LzsATA7mUdy6fJN-s6jqTFRyAVjS3-Pk/s16000/frontiers2.jpg" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Familiar
episodes from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Texas Chainsaw Massacre</i>
scenarios collide with the brutal torture-porn of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hostel</i>, and much frenzied bloodshed ensues, with an intense and
gritty style that only falls back to rather less convincing horror action for
the heroine’s brief visit to local mine works (where unwanted offspring lurk),
the climactic slaughterhouse fighting, and a crowd-pleasing shootout for the
archetypal bad girls with guns. Harassed, beaten, nearly broken, Yasmine is the
slasher genre’s newest ‘final girl’, repeatedly drenched in her attackers’
blood, arterial spray reaching the fountain heights and lawn-sprinkler breadths
of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Shogun Assassin</i>’s legendary
blanket coverage of ‘red rain’. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhly7sjlkk8lOtKzMp6-bMXfB2BnK2fYUuA1nWG3x3OxqGjKujlSIS3_VrF2btkAxs_xoEDZ8BxFA5gGDs_zUaEvVLyS6fJdZ4AOGKxc8jle7Xg9E4ZXbSiSTjogPb_74cyj7tb-RjUO1Pjig870C9GdCVkQAKN527-Klw-kBOhK5p7dC8-0mHsJxiM1hw/s500/Frontiers3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhly7sjlkk8lOtKzMp6-bMXfB2BnK2fYUuA1nWG3x3OxqGjKujlSIS3_VrF2btkAxs_xoEDZ8BxFA5gGDs_zUaEvVLyS6fJdZ4AOGKxc8jle7Xg9E4ZXbSiSTjogPb_74cyj7tb-RjUO1Pjig870C9GdCVkQAKN527-Klw-kBOhK5p7dC8-0mHsJxiM1hw/s16000/Frontiers3.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihOZfXVnJElG0B3xM7BhgpMguAzVugDQAHIuSU4654jNEvF9CvsN0mjDUbcuqScoul02t0MEaBLoGbATG5wSURpN-Zvlundq4tgDPbRAYtrZCPvBKb0POoNkqWYGKd8cm_oWkeINayRly9aSvbUPZWrX4Y7ajkyaqt5GS0LUKnmeoUH2SRpM75454cAVs/s500/Frontiers4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="348" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihOZfXVnJElG0B3xM7BhgpMguAzVugDQAHIuSU4654jNEvF9CvsN0mjDUbcuqScoul02t0MEaBLoGbATG5wSURpN-Zvlundq4tgDPbRAYtrZCPvBKb0POoNkqWYGKd8cm_oWkeINayRly9aSvbUPZWrX4Y7ajkyaqt5GS0LUKnmeoUH2SRpM75454cAVs/s16000/Frontiers4.jpg" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">If
intro montages of TV news reports and location footage recall the seriousness
of apocalyptic SF, the spectacular ending’s blunt force vengeance is
reminiscent of spaghetti westerns. Part evocative fairy tale, part cautionary modern-myth,
with layers of sinister and savage theatricality, this delivers a blatant
attempt to moderate our grieving heroine’s pain and suffering with some
reassuringly disreputable ‘Grand Guignol’ retribution. No respecter of safety
zones or any boundaries of taste, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170317203856/http://videovista.net/reviews/sept08/frontier.html" target="_blank"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Frontier(s)</i></a> presents a wild rush of moral outrage, unflinching shocks, chilling despair,
and darkest comedy. Prefer your tragic horror movies resolved by merciless
ultra-violence? (‘Born into a world of chaos and hatred?’) This one’s for
you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1s1KU_QnLD61PxBmeSWeh9WT596EIRXzFw8X6z_GSBFyIgrY5ievxkRxVtUyt3_0TGTQNSKfa3mW27wWyZGR-sWRdpM6RtrHHdYwX8DVFbVbmjUl9VIJG619xa9M708AN2r79h5hmUWeYarZzzDQmdmzr2PyNRyvqqYreEi10VsaRRphX5BfcGn_2RR8/s500/Frontiers7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1s1KU_QnLD61PxBmeSWeh9WT596EIRXzFw8X6z_GSBFyIgrY5ievxkRxVtUyt3_0TGTQNSKfa3mW27wWyZGR-sWRdpM6RtrHHdYwX8DVFbVbmjUl9VIJG619xa9M708AN2r79h5hmUWeYarZzzDQmdmzr2PyNRyvqqYreEi10VsaRRphX5BfcGn_2RR8/s16000/Frontiers7.jpg" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Disc extras:</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Reinventing The
Extreme</i>
- an interview with director Xavier Gens</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Going Method</i> - interview with Karina
Testa</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Light In The Dark</i> - interview Maud
Forget</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lights, Camera...
Fear</i>
- interview with cinematographer Laurent Bares</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sounds Of Violence</i> - interview with composer
Jean-Piere Taieb</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
Making of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Frontier(s)</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with Zoe Rose Smith and Kelly Gredner</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Fotografik
short film</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Storyboard
comparisons</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Behind-the-scenes
photos with commentary by Gens and Testa</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Deleted
scenes with optional commentary by Gens and Testa </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trailers</span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrUbxCI3dXzpnvR4GnFArradnP-ld6oUiT94d-i91ZLcY77V2uFjpx48IkRGWKb010vrTAK9lAVpnftl0vYuj9rumMfmRalWXRTMGdBMbRTIjileNf54Tw5s9rUUMjrB31yqUftQC2Ww8acUxXe77OFtZo0xIK3H0stKflZ5CvMEyfQ9Vo_MypUZiiT3k/s500/Frontiers8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="215" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrUbxCI3dXzpnvR4GnFArradnP-ld6oUiT94d-i91ZLcY77V2uFjpx48IkRGWKb010vrTAK9lAVpnftl0vYuj9rumMfmRalWXRTMGdBMbRTIjileNf54Tw5s9rUUMjrB31yqUftQC2Ww8acUxXe77OFtZo0xIK3H0stKflZ5CvMEyfQ9Vo_MypUZiiT3k/s16000/Frontiers8.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Limited
edition contents:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Rigid
slipcase with new artwork by James Neal</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">70-page
book with new essays by Dr Sarah Cleary, Mark H. Harris, Carolyn Mauricette,
and Alexandra West</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">6
collectors’ art cards</span></li></ul><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXH-WXw5Ad6mlWvsPwmFRJPnl1Dl5Vn84iWH3QzaqjDbSxM1Ex2-FPp_rsIrnnk1jek9g5Dmn2Qv6l4vbqbAFBJGS-EAq6ByebaYH_tZH2AzxWog0RNDzTzxb6qhwKeQ6GwvSMEfx2BJM1FUq8ndEua51FX0OBhYf-uQqkfQiFj64ZdRSH5ZfZ0zrK8fw/s500/Frontiers9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="412" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXH-WXw5Ad6mlWvsPwmFRJPnl1Dl5Vn84iWH3QzaqjDbSxM1Ex2-FPp_rsIrnnk1jek9g5Dmn2Qv6l4vbqbAFBJGS-EAq6ByebaYH_tZH2AzxWog0RNDzTzxb6qhwKeQ6GwvSMEfx2BJM1FUq8ndEua51FX0OBhYf-uQqkfQiFj64ZdRSH5ZfZ0zrK8fw/s16000/Frontiers9.jpg" /></a></div>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-23124646761452351362023-06-02T18:22:00.005+01:002023-07-21T10:29:00.616+01:00The Changeling<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_H_S1qbTncPPp3tz15NkJY28MxrpsYKTBcEaUTVj_Zh9q10dpG3t-AsYU2qBABZR6E81xd8YONQHWyKolKwYDPReSBN2JOTgn1Si690lX6U1PR1R2tjWQssxE25YLxBw4zXxGykro6PCQ3k2F_8BuyV3crNXDVPbIvGrSjJ6ChOPLuGRvUY4oJ5gk/s1500/Changeling1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1184" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_H_S1qbTncPPp3tz15NkJY28MxrpsYKTBcEaUTVj_Zh9q10dpG3t-AsYU2qBABZR6E81xd8YONQHWyKolKwYDPReSBN2JOTgn1Si690lX6U1PR1R2tjWQssxE25YLxBw4zXxGykro6PCQ3k2F_8BuyV3crNXDVPbIvGrSjJ6ChOPLuGRvUY4oJ5gk/w316-h400/Changeling1.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>Cast: <span style="font-family: verdana;">George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere, and Melvyn
Douglas</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Peter Medak </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">107 minutes (15) 1980 </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight 4K Ultra HD</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 5th June]</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Rating: </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">7/10</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Donald Morefield</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Written
by William Gray and Diana Maddox, based on a story by Russell Hunter, this is a
classy haunted-house movie. It stars the great George C. Scott as piano teacher
and composer John Russell, who is still grieving the loss of his wife (Jean
Marsh) and daughter in a road accident (a tragedy as the film begins), when he
moves into an old mansion to start his life over. There’s a mysterious presence
in this house that “doesn’t want people," and Russell discovers that he
must solve a 70-year-old murder before he can find peace within himself...</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijkMDj6CQYB7GZ2-pXUYuaCluy8rpmVwU9FryGCfDJcSmLS_LCNTJRJgggYt41LtP2s1fAclzmVIUBfkFpuvlBQOgGCGXxgQ1ENiJcbUWFq5zHPI0wCaB1IAlmiJ-wVBQ4LNAykyJEf8qnwAtDlaKyxsQaF0xPdsjke1CasEuFrvwVo8YJ2BqiCj8l/s500/Changeling3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijkMDj6CQYB7GZ2-pXUYuaCluy8rpmVwU9FryGCfDJcSmLS_LCNTJRJgggYt41LtP2s1fAclzmVIUBfkFpuvlBQOgGCGXxgQ1ENiJcbUWFq5zHPI0wCaB1IAlmiJ-wVBQ4LNAykyJEf8qnwAtDlaKyxsQaF0xPdsjke1CasEuFrvwVo8YJ2BqiCj8l/s16000/Changeling3.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMcTVhXypV5t63DUYTaUmfmQFE0XcOC_Sm_PM9tpq-kmLOLIRL-p4x57kkmOUq_ajRky-eSNyZnUlM458D5oFbuuwo2nGAw7nEJADuuUNUtYNUEGqhGxkrH4QDF3mPXKGvetqFQNd7Y7Q8Mz0BgNMrUZC1tCS-OKj5Pgd7jcdyLHzl7xZUqJmvCBW/s500/Changeling4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMcTVhXypV5t63DUYTaUmfmQFE0XcOC_Sm_PM9tpq-kmLOLIRL-p4x57kkmOUq_ajRky-eSNyZnUlM458D5oFbuuwo2nGAw7nEJADuuUNUtYNUEGqhGxkrH4QDF3mPXKGvetqFQNd7Y7Q8Mz0BgNMrUZC1tCS-OKj5Pgd7jcdyLHzl7xZUqJmvCBW/s16000/Changeling4.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cinematographer
John Coquillon does a superb job, capturing quintessential spooky angles in the
house, especially in the narrow confines of corridors leading to a dusty and
heavily cobwebbed attic room - where the aforementioned murder occurred.
Although it’s hard to accept some of the intuitive leaps made by Scott’s heroic
ghost-hunter as valid dramatically, there’s no escaping the atmospherics
conjured by Peter Medak’s old-fashioned, yet nonetheless highly astute and
non-exploitative, direction. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1EQ-V3YgkjqL55Nh3JAZttDLZbTgphkhIzlovVouvFXYmcqbA2wgWywes7lAE0kMu9LPkBYgEn-soCS6Of3Uyyxs4ijKc8RBP23RE3h9HgIuHVQ1z_k_18EaDOxMN_88YphywOXtR4LbtnWmGHapab2WW9MNHeyIQRnYum3GE8VbOAQFncExUjWiz/s500/Changeling5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="287" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1EQ-V3YgkjqL55Nh3JAZttDLZbTgphkhIzlovVouvFXYmcqbA2wgWywes7lAE0kMu9LPkBYgEn-soCS6Of3Uyyxs4ijKc8RBP23RE3h9HgIuHVQ1z_k_18EaDOxMN_88YphywOXtR4LbtnWmGHapab2WW9MNHeyIQRnYum3GE8VbOAQFncExUjWiz/s16000/Changeling5.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaiGtjTpWtnJN3xCdelJPNiJvNugJCnQ94Hf2vCToCKXbl2HK6N-rXzmKycUqBbqpxSDkuDD-R0sUdZ9_m3sC_K5T-JXofbc9F_DszkQfpsPzhuLmLFrvJm7ZcaI1rsn0UhIgt4vXKz2nzbvNIt6BFUbj76LH_27REVkpBJu021d1D8m1wijqBgzbN/s500/Changeling6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaiGtjTpWtnJN3xCdelJPNiJvNugJCnQ94Hf2vCToCKXbl2HK6N-rXzmKycUqBbqpxSDkuDD-R0sUdZ9_m3sC_K5T-JXofbc9F_DszkQfpsPzhuLmLFrvJm7ZcaI1rsn0UhIgt4vXKz2nzbvNIt6BFUbj76LH_27REVkpBJu021d1D8m1wijqBgzbN/s16000/Changeling6.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This
is a supernatural chiller, full of implied dangers, not a horror movie with
lashings of gore. Its accumulation of strange incidents (curious banging
noises, breaking windows) builds into an undeniable sense of unease and
disquiet, which is neither stabilised nor dispelled by the séance where a
medium’s automatic writing spells out doom for the villain of the piece. If you
can watch the child’s red ball come bouncing downstairs, again - even after
Russell has been out and thrown the ball away - without feeling a shiver, your
central nervous system may require medical attention.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxwCOOF4BtxxEnz3pXL8-l6qWtAl49yl5h-LgpAnVtz_uXGnzAC5HHpei72uqJ5gphRFcaT5COMFezhMKFd1H9BbX7kQacMp6KNXs56P611Put6nhc7vIHuM2nJ9iPU7lVwd4qMVABdP0ShkotUrJUcGpqfN-pYsKUumXCxPkEHl5O4WhShHTvwMWB/s500/Changeling7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxwCOOF4BtxxEnz3pXL8-l6qWtAl49yl5h-LgpAnVtz_uXGnzAC5HHpei72uqJ5gphRFcaT5COMFezhMKFd1H9BbX7kQacMp6KNXs56P611Put6nhc7vIHuM2nJ9iPU7lVwd4qMVABdP0ShkotUrJUcGpqfN-pYsKUumXCxPkEHl5O4WhShHTvwMWB/s16000/Changeling7.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Melvyn
Douglas is stalwart, and burdened with guilt over the amorality of his
inherited wealth, as the aged senator with a secret past. Trish Van Devere (who
was married to Scott at the time) is good as a sceptical local historian, and
there are minor roles for Barry Morse, Eric Christmas, and John Colicos as an
ill-fated police detective.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Extras:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">New
4K scan and restoration.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Interview
with Medak by filmmaker Adrian Garcia Bogliano at Morbido Fest 2018</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Exile On Curzon St</i> - Medak on his
early years in swinging London</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The House On
Cheesman Park</i>
- the haunting true-story of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Changeling</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Peter Medak and producer Joel B. Michaels</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Marilyn Burns, Allen Danziger and Paul A. Partain, with art director Robert
A. Burns</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Music Of The
Changeling</i>
- interview with music arranger Kenneth Wannberg</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Building The House
Of Horror</i>
- interview with art director Reuben Freed</span></li><li><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The Psychotronic
Tourist</span></i></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Master
of horror Mick Garris on <i>The Changeling</i></span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEildjp0A-DH3hbvy8H1oJLvP2C9sJ33iRMsHCkypbxh4UjZ_MLQZcGdtJ0dwlmTeE_WX8k_jtzos4zBWobgy1obQzI_5h-31P_J56sa-1q8FUnNTDKR2kOpIW3mP5lxX4MS3AjodsTuX76DzZPXwKlMjt5gFEKj8v8yzIm9bUtmxRYAAVAOxej4I-EX/s500/Changeling9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEildjp0A-DH3hbvy8H1oJLvP2C9sJ33iRMsHCkypbxh4UjZ_MLQZcGdtJ0dwlmTeE_WX8k_jtzos4zBWobgy1obQzI_5h-31P_J56sa-1q8FUnNTDKR2kOpIW3mP5lxX4MS3AjodsTuX76DzZPXwKlMjt5gFEKj8v8yzIm9bUtmxRYAAVAOxej4I-EX/s16000/Changeling9.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-69469899156670546772023-05-07T12:45:00.002+01:002023-05-07T12:49:58.025+01:00The Texas Chain Saw Massacre<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCQEYAzndU8FOAqojhVMGRV6tF4kX7dXx71ryD3OZMqSZTaay--WNoN0cR6vWmPnWw0N1eRmDIoU_JFA8Re5zGKM9OKLyu3siLICCq7tLaH644lGTtNn4cDDC13LPVJoadPzZnIyycL_eDhHWvnb3TFVKy-075v7NlFBtFOObAhvyZR9GJPZ7YDV4L/s842/TCSM1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="842" data-original-width="666" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCQEYAzndU8FOAqojhVMGRV6tF4kX7dXx71ryD3OZMqSZTaay--WNoN0cR6vWmPnWw0N1eRmDIoU_JFA8Re5zGKM9OKLyu3siLICCq7tLaH644lGTtNn4cDDC13LPVJoadPzZnIyycL_eDhHWvnb3TFVKy-075v7NlFBtFOObAhvyZR9GJPZ7YDV4L/w316-h400/TCSM1.jpg" width="316" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, and Gunnar
Hansen</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Tobe Hooper</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">83 minutes (18) 1974 <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight Blu-ray <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>9/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
archetypal low-budget shocker that redefined 1970s’ cult horror, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Texas Chain Saw Massacre</b> maintained
its fearsome genre reputation well into the video boom era. But in the wake of
other franchise-starting competitors, like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Halloween</i>
(1978), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Evil Dead</i> (1981), and
such later classics as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Day Of The Dead</i>
(1985), and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hellraiser</i> (1987), Tobe
Hooper’s postmodernist American gothic stood apart from contemporary slashers,
or zombie gore-fests, because the film’s greatest strength was always its basis
in a vile but true story, of 1957, about Wisconsin grave-robber Ed Gein.
Although the very same ghoulish crimes had previously inspired Hitchcock’s
legendary <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Psycho</i> (1960), Hooper’s
more sensationalist approach benefited greatly from being made in colour, with
ruthless exploitation of lurid terrors, following the grinding atmosphere of
unease before extreme violence begins. Whereas Hitchcock tempered traditional
suspense with gallows humour, centred on crazy loner Norman Bates, forever
haunted by his mother, Hopper delivers an exceptionally vivid treatment about
serial kills by an extended hillbilly family of grotesque outlaws.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxxFZhCaGQ7r3vG0Q5oNy4bMq-xHmvyjmhZ5pioOWXDNEqWgL3NG7PXZBIsxA_sY7E731qu_ZDQN_pz1djLZDZhSCB3a8taPB6MwjGfWfTne_0VGW0vGWWv_dGTSabJ7r0QHuosCsxQ1m1HvFgUuL_0hSwv8RLB5vZGXcL1IZvXRt__LskcoEqTGGq/s500/TCSM2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxxFZhCaGQ7r3vG0Q5oNy4bMq-xHmvyjmhZ5pioOWXDNEqWgL3NG7PXZBIsxA_sY7E731qu_ZDQN_pz1djLZDZhSCB3a8taPB6MwjGfWfTne_0VGW0vGWWv_dGTSabJ7r0QHuosCsxQ1m1HvFgUuL_0hSwv8RLB5vZGXcL1IZvXRt__LskcoEqTGGq/s16000/TCSM2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Marilyn
Burns, who went on to star in Cronenberg’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rabid</i>
(1977), plays Sally Hardesty, one of a van load of young people who fall victim
to the homicidal Sawyer clan. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">TCSM</b>
is actually quite low in blood and gory scenes, partly because Hooper’s film
crew lacked the technical resources of Hollywood studio productions like
Friedkin’s notorious <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Exorcist</i>
(1973), where cutting-edge special make-up effects enabled fantastical and supernatural
stunts. However, storytelling against a background of cannibalism and
necrophilia grants Hooper’s movie of broadly realistic horrors a darker sense of dread when
monstrous ‘Leatherface’ (Gunnar Hansen), goes about his grisly business. This slaughter-house mentality is keenly
invested with a terrifying lunatic vigour that no amount of religious chanting, or
chilling demonic-possession, could possibly match for sheer visceral morbidity. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfseFDhIL9KSQkEDLKAqSCRpQxLvdIQzUsECsKLIaQHdBQXNSM2yLL_Vv_7Pf_DJokv-qJfGaOdDXBtpXeCnrI6V4iORZXp7SA7ouY3Xbf-gTLNxGmiPnr8jyCoroWr3HMeLwiuDdAVckXZ7xwzvHhullQrvIo3ZPV_2QU9_sIx_5O1qVjGXPIyvc/s500/TCSM3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfseFDhIL9KSQkEDLKAqSCRpQxLvdIQzUsECsKLIaQHdBQXNSM2yLL_Vv_7Pf_DJokv-qJfGaOdDXBtpXeCnrI6V4iORZXp7SA7ouY3Xbf-gTLNxGmiPnr8jyCoroWr3HMeLwiuDdAVckXZ7xwzvHhullQrvIo3ZPV_2QU9_sIx_5O1qVjGXPIyvc/s16000/TCSM3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Personally,
I think that most of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TCSM</i> is often deliriously
funny, despite its unrelenting intensity. Its displays of black-comedy mayhem
are crazier characters than most of Monty Python’s TV and violent-movie
adventures, in particular their Arthurian knockabout <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Monty Python And The Holy Grail</i> (1975). Hooper transforms a rural
house into a ‘Grand Guignol’ theatre setting for ghastly wide-eyed nightmares,
creating a splattery experience that eventually seemed to shape Wes Craven’s directing
career from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Last House On The Left</i>
(1972) and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Hills Have Eyes</i>
(1977), all the way to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Nightmare On Elm
Street</i> (1984) and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The People Under
The Stairs</i> (1991).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixtm-uHiVhwsnjlOldlxLgxzMdLcHIQdGg6ie7990p_ZY4Ciw93A_IcBP5U8EEr-bTdq7bTK795EDf4wMWPMn-rWZrKyBlu_v45qBHj37JYmH0wDVFVv6tfZ_uUTpFFrxdbGlXZCJ2T9q96i0TH4gYARePhjm_YzQyzu1fM4ACdPi6JGUj9I9pCNgG/s500/TCSM4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="250" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixtm-uHiVhwsnjlOldlxLgxzMdLcHIQdGg6ie7990p_ZY4Ciw93A_IcBP5U8EEr-bTdq7bTK795EDf4wMWPMn-rWZrKyBlu_v45qBHj37JYmH0wDVFVv6tfZ_uUTpFFrxdbGlXZCJ2T9q96i0TH4gYARePhjm_YzQyzu1fM4ACdPi6JGUj9I9pCNgG/s16000/TCSM4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">More
than simply a film franchise, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TCSM</i> is
a sub-cultural phenomenon. It has spawned a veritable industry of sequels,
remakes, and spin-offs, and strongly influenced generations of cross-genre filmmakers
eager to exploit a seemingly insatiable audience for gruesome imagery, whether intended
for comedy or shock values. It can be viewed as a confrontation with ultimate evils in corrupted souls, or even as allegory of how death and trauma in warfare breaks down humanity in any survivors. As the Sawyers' saga approaches its 50th
anniversary, this two-disc Blu-ray edition ensures the primal slice of horror-show history
is now readily available for critical reassessment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCT2vJSfYebXyD2NHoFRB0xvi3r7zF3nRX1tqzK5CuDL_xq7x_YmhYP3_5ZCdVWzNDmZaIth-uPVfYZxhRZXCZFLOIrSfKltbSOfk3tmV3de50yAgEX_3MFq8pWM9dl9LzEz1KHV29vZzzzplu0MUOnrvPY8tF3UwGKVVfLw6PkM-RyhAAlRIdK9T/s500/TCSM5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCT2vJSfYebXyD2NHoFRB0xvi3r7zF3nRX1tqzK5CuDL_xq7x_YmhYP3_5ZCdVWzNDmZaIth-uPVfYZxhRZXCZFLOIrSfKltbSOfk3tmV3de50yAgEX_3MFq8pWM9dl9LzEz1KHV29vZzzzplu0MUOnrvPY8tF3UwGKVVfLw6PkM-RyhAAlRIdK9T/s16000/TCSM5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Bonus
material: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">A
new presentation featuring additional restoration work produced by Second
Sight.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">New
commentary by Amanda Reyes and Bill Ackerman</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
track with Tobe Hooper</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with cinematographer Daniel Pearl, editor J. Larry Carroll, and sound recordist
Ted Nicolaou</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with Hooper, Pearl, and Gunnar Hansen</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
with stars Marilyn Burns, Allen Danziger, and Paul A. Partain, plus art director
Robert A. Burns</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Legacy of The
Texas Chain Saw Massacre</i> - a new feature-length documentary </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Behind The Mask</i>: Alexandra
Heller-Nicholas on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Texas Chain Saw
Massacre</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Shocking Truth</i> documentary</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj3-MmskCGIoDYQtoGV1juA0KAe3zBLqEHDewUJVXvLj0UwxJq3bGPGuMlngYpRBvItTzuajubsd_UNXL9WKDrkNX1xff7HPI0YikKHV7VEo-rf1EXQiaF0ppYQ1GtXx4RZsR_Y6IADlb87g1aLPtlKil1e8tTUtD-CVaKOE-m6-UctvmdT5x1CdZ9/s500/TCSM6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj3-MmskCGIoDYQtoGV1juA0KAe3zBLqEHDewUJVXvLj0UwxJq3bGPGuMlngYpRBvItTzuajubsd_UNXL9WKDrkNX1xff7HPI0YikKHV7VEo-rf1EXQiaF0ppYQ1GtXx4RZsR_Y6IADlb87g1aLPtlKil1e8tTUtD-CVaKOE-m6-UctvmdT5x1CdZ9/s16000/TCSM6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Disc
two:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cutting Chain Saw</i> with J. Larry
Carroll</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Granpaw’s Tales</i> with actor John
Dugan</span></li><li><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Horror’s Hallowed
Grounds</span></i></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Flesh Wound</i>s: seven stories of
the saw</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Off The Hook</i> with actor Teri
McMinn</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Business Of
Chain Saw</i>
with production manager Ron Bozman</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">House Tour</i> with actor Gunnar
Hansen</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Tobe
Hooper interview</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Kim
Henkel interview</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Deleted
Scenes</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trailers</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Stills
Gallery</span></li></ul><p></p>
Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-24431897395343661422023-03-22T09:18:00.002+00:002023-07-21T10:28:35.743+01:00Martin<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEBcLQKjyMDj9vFY0dw-upls6kHgJt8GNtky_n2y7GmgUmN_SnhApTo8X0P9p1G0tP2h4ADPLmwmAapX-OezKcKT0QiFovcwB1HcNSzCUYTf5Ln5RWNGhwWXzDBW2_E98CHTHDPFr-NqXvLZrTaqROdhy6GOfkegLQz5OJF0IWDsE-yhpqqQ5_ZVr/s572/Martin4K1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEBcLQKjyMDj9vFY0dw-upls6kHgJt8GNtky_n2y7GmgUmN_SnhApTo8X0P9p1G0tP2h4ADPLmwmAapX-OezKcKT0QiFovcwB1HcNSzCUYTf5Ln5RWNGhwWXzDBW2_E98CHTHDPFr-NqXvLZrTaqROdhy6GOfkegLQz5OJF0IWDsE-yhpqqQ5_ZVr/w315-h400/Martin4K1.jpg" width="315" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: <span style="background: rgb(254, 253, 245);">John Amplas,
Lincoln Maazel, and Christine Forrest</span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: George A. Romero </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">95 minutes (18) 1977</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight 4K Ultra HD<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 27th March]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>8/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Max Cairnduff</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">George
A. Romero is best known for his zombie movies. Apparently, though, his own
favourite among his films is the less well known </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">Martin</b><span style="font-family: verdana;">. Having now watched it (for the first time) I can see why he’s
so taken. It’s an exceptional work that’s bleak, sad, disturbing, and
challenging.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">John
Amplas plays the eponymous Martin. When the film begins he’s on a train to
Pittsburgh. He sees an attractive fellow passenger who has paid for an
overnight cabin. He fantasises about her inviting him in and making love to
him. The reality is that he rapes and murders her. The woman struggles to
escape, but is drugged unconscious and Martin then drapes her arms over him as
if she were reaching for him in passion. Eventually he slits her wrist and
drinks from it.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">That’s the first five minutes of the film. Already the viewer can see that Martin is a rapist, a murderer, and a deluded fantasist. The question though is whether that’s all he is or whether he’s also a vampire.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1nEtchyEPeDfwP0Nz8KKO1g6BedBB6wiEgZm_ZcTu967iRBYBZUQSeyw616wxzGMdqo046mIakkeC13gGB8nb96B9oIhyku7ejrApNKdwB_707D5LyB9KtSABouqWdiqveNxC4u-wwuXEfN7iZSsrhGFQHVaJf_8X4QTpmP6D2Gn2J-cF0LprmSv/s500/martin4K2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1nEtchyEPeDfwP0Nz8KKO1g6BedBB6wiEgZm_ZcTu967iRBYBZUQSeyw616wxzGMdqo046mIakkeC13gGB8nb96B9oIhyku7ejrApNKdwB_707D5LyB9KtSABouqWdiqveNxC4u-wwuXEfN7iZSsrhGFQHVaJf_8X4QTpmP6D2Gn2J-cF0LprmSv/s16000/martin4K2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When
the train pulls in, Martin is greeted by elderly relative Tada Cuda (Lincoln
Maazel), in whose house he will be staying. The house is festooned with garlic
and crucifixes, and Cuda explains to Martin that he will save him then destroy
him but that, if he feeds on the people of the city, he will destroy him
without saving him. Cuda also warns Martin not to speak to the other person who
lives in the house, Martin’s cousin Christina (Christine Forrest). Cuda clearly
believes Martin is a vampire, even addressing him as ‘nosferatu’. Christina’s
view is that Martin is simply mentally ill and that Cuda is making it worse.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I’m
obviously not going to repeat the whole plot here. The above is merely the set-up.
The question this raises is whether Martin is a profoundly psychologically-damaged
teenager who is enabled in his fantasies by an ageing relative’s belief in
them, or whether he is as he and Cuda believe: an 84-year-old who has kept
young by drinking the blood of others.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiguVXJSY2NIp4_ni5sH--7LK8AEVLN-dt7jQeOewsi3timCVMLk0GD7Lpp-8Ls88Mzg2sQKRzYtKRsCiZ_NU77d3MGOTqGvazLWm16zC3X5oKpupS2R310W9A3AgQVPCWT8BBb2VJzBzFaMQgnN0kbW2w4Rg9sZBtn3I93K3DH7-sfdM5a8YS3ZhBl/s500/Martin4K3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiguVXJSY2NIp4_ni5sH--7LK8AEVLN-dt7jQeOewsi3timCVMLk0GD7Lpp-8Ls88Mzg2sQKRzYtKRsCiZ_NU77d3MGOTqGvazLWm16zC3X5oKpupS2R310W9A3AgQVPCWT8BBb2VJzBzFaMQgnN0kbW2w4Rg9sZBtn3I93K3DH7-sfdM5a8YS3ZhBl/s16000/Martin4K3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">There
are hints in the film that Martin may be just what he says he is. Cuda refers
to others in the family similarly afflicted; suggesting a genetic condition
which Martin may have inherited. Cuda is keen that Christine does not have
children in case she carries the condition silently within her. Cuda, though,
is not reliable. He believes too in the old superstitions, in garlic and
exorcism but as Martin says to him again and again there is no magic. If Martin
is anything more than just a boy he is a natural phenomenon. If we can’t trust
Cuda on the magic though, can we trust him when he claims that vampirism runs
in the family?</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As
the film progresses, Martin forms a sort of quasi friendship with a bored and
lonely housewife (played by Elyane Nadeau). He takes to phoning a local radio
shock-jock and talking about how one day he’d like to do “the sexy stuff” with
someone who’s awake. And every now and then he gets hungry, drugs a protesting
and terrified victim and murders them. He may or may not be a vampire, but he
is a monster.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPyd77W6NL9evmclNZmucXVuNLAXht_uB4X1EULOpVM4NNk1yWIMAkmJkipQi6U7u5CSSkXizTED38-S2qujxuR6yZniRRYAu9Xu3u4d0J4phu6jhO2VcFuJtNnhdaCL3bx9xVpBFxsPRm9m_bHD2OF7UJ1UGmky7EMoWo9LZ1ySaL9iF66H3xl5Z0/s500/Martin4K4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPyd77W6NL9evmclNZmucXVuNLAXht_uB4X1EULOpVM4NNk1yWIMAkmJkipQi6U7u5CSSkXizTED38-S2qujxuR6yZniRRYAu9Xu3u4d0J4phu6jhO2VcFuJtNnhdaCL3bx9xVpBFxsPRm9m_bHD2OF7UJ1UGmky7EMoWo9LZ1ySaL9iF66H3xl5Z0/s16000/Martin4K4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Pittsburgh
here is a decaying industrial city. Nobody appears to have any prospects.
Christine goes out with a philandering mechanic she doesn’t love in the hope
that he may at least take her somewhere better. The housewife has nothing to
look forward to other than the possibility of an affair with Martin, who has
taken a job as a delivery clerk in Cuda’s grocery store. Martin's fantasies (or
perhaps memories) are shot in black and white and have him dressed in elegant
19th century clothes, chasing beautiful women in flowing nightdresses or chased
in turn by torch-wielding mobs. His reality is dingy buildings, filthy streets,
ugly murders, and flights from the police.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
horror scenes here are unusually effective; in part because they’re filmed in
an almost documentary-style with the camera staying on the struggling victim
long after most films would have cut away or opted for a sudden gory
resolution. There’s also a realism to it all which again makes it all the more
unpleasant. Zombies don’t really exist and nor do vampires of course, but
violent sociopaths with delusions do and that may be all that Martin is. There’s
a squalor here that contrasts with the romance of Martin’s dreams or the
complex architecture of Cuda’s beliefs. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The performances are solid. Amplas is convincingly pathetic as Martin, at times evoking real pity showing again what exactly it is Martin does to people and how horrible it is. Maazel is on fine form as Cuda, stubbornly sticking to his beliefs, despite the evident fact that Martin is unaffected by sunlight, crucifixes, priests or garlic (he even bites a clove at one point, to show Cuda there’s no magic).</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizt7d-ub305nfPvPyB1ydO5X3lkaOplmEaeIsQSLNXVsh03KFDiVh16AfwIRPo8JkRVQ9Vhkm85L0mQkaaDirV4-qJuT5Cq3f7wK-HAGCZ6OddJFLHz3zMr8b3hkpigG97lOD2RQVsATJAGVh6l2H4i4r80HIlBTof3A3uLn0GNzVl3ftFvRANYrx2/s500/Martin4K5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizt7d-ub305nfPvPyB1ydO5X3lkaOplmEaeIsQSLNXVsh03KFDiVh16AfwIRPo8JkRVQ9Vhkm85L0mQkaaDirV4-qJuT5Cq3f7wK-HAGCZ6OddJFLHz3zMr8b3hkpigG97lOD2RQVsATJAGVh6l2H4i4r80HIlBTof3A3uLn0GNzVl3ftFvRANYrx2/s16000/Martin4K5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Forrest
convinces as the cousin who wants to help Martin, but not enough to really go
out of her way for him. Nadeau is persuasive as a housewife trapped in a
loveless marriage and bored beyond endurance. These four central-performances are
the heart of the film, each a study in delusion or desperation.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Romero
never did another film quite like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Martin</i>.
That’s a great shame because it is very good. It’s rare for a horror film to
actually make uncomfortable viewing, but at times <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Martin</i> is just that. The ambiguity as to what Martin actually is
denies the viewer any reassuring answers, and there’s a banal pointlessness to
it all which again makes it in places a difficult watch. People die in fear and
pain. Those who live don’t enjoy it much. If anything beyond psychopathy is
going on it’s just some hereditary condition, and there’s no romance to that.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Martin</i> is a defiantly
unromantic film. It’s the antithesis of the vampire as glamorous creature of
the night. Here, far from being a magnetic seducer, Martin has to drug women to
sleep with them. When awake he can barely answer their questions. He’s no
prince of the night; he’s just an inadequate who likes to kill women. Against
that, whether he’s 84 or not is almost irrelevant.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghhbP2OBGetBRbeouW264OhYfIahdbZfQsGSJ9CW85V8Pu7hFaf3Y7AWFcwJ15L2xgIMbmDot-YekegyvoJZoS7flsI-rxGuk9AUXykAJcHL5zDAVfN6i8XzKvreag07fvebMiZgCTUBRSVdNVagnL6OFHI86KRpqxsYLpx1Q_oS_HxFd3K5-Ufwab/s500/Martin4K6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghhbP2OBGetBRbeouW264OhYfIahdbZfQsGSJ9CW85V8Pu7hFaf3Y7AWFcwJ15L2xgIMbmDot-YekegyvoJZoS7flsI-rxGuk9AUXykAJcHL5zDAVfN6i8XzKvreag07fvebMiZgCTUBRSVdNVagnL6OFHI86KRpqxsYLpx1Q_oS_HxFd3K5-Ufwab/s16000/Martin4K6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight 4K restoration supervised and approved by DOP Michael Gornick. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Disc extras: </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Taste The Blood Of
Martin</i>:
new feature-length documentary, including location tour</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Scoring The Shadows</i>: new interview
with composer Donald Rubinstein</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Making </i>Martin: A Recounting</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by George A. Romero, John Amplas, and Tom Savini</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Kat Ellinger</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
by Travis Crawford</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">‘J
Roy - New And Used Furniture’: short film by Tony Buba</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Trailers and TV adverts</span></li></ul><p></p>
Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-91075449829080601742023-02-27T11:36:00.001+00:002023-02-27T11:36:22.356+00:00Cursed Films<p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Featuring: Richard Donner, Gary Sherman, Linda Blair</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGC1zD6-5IYTxJmRI0_WXVXxvWZCvA0NBN2wEEhv0uqaAlZXT36TcsdxzIfchOks5b9ESPV9fgyno0m12bhccci4Nm_ocEP5pBQkNMsvxZ-Gz3Bqz8HVQoFZG3M-M4sxIDXl2kpt85jq2B3K8MUatfrw5pPHXCjs6THSliS6ObUJSGuGSIwUSYBAJR/s848/cursed1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGC1zD6-5IYTxJmRI0_WXVXxvWZCvA0NBN2wEEhv0uqaAlZXT36TcsdxzIfchOks5b9ESPV9fgyno0m12bhccci4Nm_ocEP5pBQkNMsvxZ-Gz3Bqz8HVQoFZG3M-M4sxIDXl2kpt85jq2B3K8MUatfrw5pPHXCjs6THSliS6ObUJSGuGSIwUSYBAJR/w283-h400/cursed1.jpg" width="283" /></a></span></div><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Jay Cheel</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">141 minutes (15) 2020 </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Acorn / Shudder Blu-ray <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This documentary show concerns five peculiar examples of
American cinema with specific genre themes that, usually over the decades
since, but sometimes during the sensational publicity upon first release, have
acquired their own mythology. Often with meta-fictional aspects supporting
their now legendary status, public beliefs or superstitions led to these
allegedly ‘jinxed’ movies providing easy promo hype when odd coincidences are
confused with causality.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVeHS3YkjPxvoE9B-pLtjnml3VKhaW6naNXUHQhvs3SmjaxQ1npcJJTXEorg3E88FERZuFRCA028IjmKpxekF4BpPTyV0mth5Fbpdwuyk2sy1B4eG03122-ARu-VqrbwfS_COlJyyyadbDgFBCUkMHs47JnM4uXrGMWliyAVnzt_e63tnbtL7aXQvh/s500/cursed2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVeHS3YkjPxvoE9B-pLtjnml3VKhaW6naNXUHQhvs3SmjaxQ1npcJJTXEorg3E88FERZuFRCA028IjmKpxekF4BpPTyV0mth5Fbpdwuyk2sy1B4eG03122-ARu-VqrbwfS_COlJyyyadbDgFBCUkMHs47JnM4uXrGMWliyAVnzt_e63tnbtL7aXQvh/s16000/cursed2.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The most obvious case is Tobe Hooper’s </span><b style="font-family: verdana;">Poltergeist</b><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1982), plagued by macabre
tales - seeming to mirror its own plot - about actual human skeletons being
used on the movie’s sets for the ghastly finale’s scenes of unearthed coffins.
The so-called ‘curse’ element did not appear fully until the original’s young
star Heather O’Rourke died, age 12, just before sequel </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Poltergeist III</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1988), directed by Gary Sherman, was released.
Horror attractions include almost obsessive fascinations of location tourism,
as the fictional Freeling family’s house in California became like an infamous
Mecca for overly curious fans. Building upon the notoriety of spooky thrillers,
props from various productions are now considered very collectable - especially
if they are not rare, or reproductions, but genuinely unique items. An
interview with F/X artist Craig Reardon explains how low-budget constraints for
many genre movies resulted in skeletons being sought from medical supply-houses,
because it was always cheaper than paying sculptors to make realistic bones
from scratch.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKZJY_pWkJVrkFC2AsjVZryqbtNLOWOeI1DB_XCUYju1WM6ehQTTSIBXvRuWDSOB2pXurPeE1pBjDzZaT-ReddodNTtgBOz9zpNsmfALjXdIviMvPNFkZvVudvoohe3rx4jYD1uqD5t6Jb-KxUMFb8BVFkZEmB_0kj6SyCK59qgyYfGFSzUvbJ9fri/s500/cursed3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKZJY_pWkJVrkFC2AsjVZryqbtNLOWOeI1DB_XCUYju1WM6ehQTTSIBXvRuWDSOB2pXurPeE1pBjDzZaT-ReddodNTtgBOz9zpNsmfALjXdIviMvPNFkZvVudvoohe3rx4jYD1uqD5t6Jb-KxUMFb8BVFkZEmB_0kj6SyCK59qgyYfGFSzUvbJ9fri/s16000/cursed3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Richard Donner’s <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The
Omen</b> (1976) tackled Anti-Christ prophecies like nothing before it, and
managed to summon plenty of stranger-than-fiction verve from reportage that
plane flights, carrying cast or crew, were hit by lightning. Other incidents
where deaths, related to the production, were narrowly avoided fired up
over-stimulated imaginations. Thinking around such accidents was coupled with
dire warnings from Satanists about not tempting fate. These diabolical
expectations sparked ‘pattern recognition’ behaviours from a public
appreciation of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Omen</i>, that was
certainly glossy, and slicker than previous ‘evil child’ shockers, but still a
confrontational milestone for Hollywood’s mainstream. Although this episode of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Cursed Films</b> has rather a lot more
about other horrors in general, so it’s not just about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Omen</i>, and a subsequent franchise of sequels, it’s nonetheless
interesting to ask: does watching this TV series prompt viewers to see the
original movies again?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIe7TDYVhv4K8d50lR7xkroHNkM_Ss2VAWGpRjIMfhgy2imjgYdfu-b9p7fBpEMTweqJ8U6UcBX-vBWmhdkkOvmHWSzofCCzJ2Ay1iu-LZHwS6YJUu1f0dlDkMjN9Qw6UFKi2QdiKFwHSuTiYQ3ckgTQGP67xYY-_RGpaoPmOWDKjV9gx2N5eqUdG0/s500/cursed4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIe7TDYVhv4K8d50lR7xkroHNkM_Ss2VAWGpRjIMfhgy2imjgYdfu-b9p7fBpEMTweqJ8U6UcBX-vBWmhdkkOvmHWSzofCCzJ2Ay1iu-LZHwS6YJUu1f0dlDkMjN9Qw6UFKi2QdiKFwHSuTiYQ3ckgTQGP67xYY-_RGpaoPmOWDKjV9gx2N5eqUdG0/s16000/cursed4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Tragedy can be cynically exploited, or avoided, but
sensationalist headlines nearly always provide ‘free’ publicity, so it’s really
no surprise when studios choose to advertise horrors for maximum chilling affects.
William Friedkin’s classic, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Exorcist</b>
(1973), had raised an even greater controversy. Its casting of Linda Blair as
the innocent victim of demonic possession quickly spawned a wealth of urban
legends from social anxieties and erosions of sceptical thinking. Does this
movie assert credibility for supernatural beings, and their Catholic opponents?
Obviously, a fine performance by Max von Sydow as a priest helped to realise
many of the delirious but worrying events within the movie. However, there’s a
blundering dilution of intelligent, investigative criticism here that foolishly
undermines the unquestionable cultural impacts of the landmark movie by
reducing ‘exorcism’ rituals to a dim lunacy of reality-TV styled ‘entertainment’.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vv8drt8dAgbC-TeJwZz66b98_vwuiIvpIWLiLZZEOktIbtts7gvI4LNdDHflFhZdLxBGwF3qvwX58dKcAsPF2U1YSJejBul5YwdSa_bfyd6vTh399MTseog994TthgOSvTeR4ZWjRLR1yFrDXl8B7jptfc9iM6oTJMJ_iHTb-wieFp8axTJ6SWRS/s500/cursed5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vv8drt8dAgbC-TeJwZz66b98_vwuiIvpIWLiLZZEOktIbtts7gvI4LNdDHflFhZdLxBGwF3qvwX58dKcAsPF2U1YSJejBul5YwdSa_bfyd6vTh399MTseog994TthgOSvTeR4ZWjRLR1yFrDXl8B7jptfc9iM6oTJMJ_iHTb-wieFp8axTJ6SWRS/s16000/cursed5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Anthology production <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Twilight
Zone: The Movie</b> (1983) was profoundly disturbed by its helicopter crash
during filming of stunts for Vietnam War scenes in a time-travel segment directed
by John Landis. The tragedy killed two children and actor Vic Morrow, but Landis
managed to finish editing the story before lengthy court cases began. Despite
changes to safety regulations, that have long since transformed the varied ways
that helicopters are used in movies and TV, this episode of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cursed Films</i> unwisely gives too much
attention to Lloyd Kaufman (and his Troma movies), who has no connection to the
accident, or any of the legal actions in its aftermath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVncYkB80hKIQnKZONyzqGaflDKGSrkz7Vt5FSveKBz1W5t_6402hIaXW_KSH68X5cvyCibsW2Tp_gW0AOVD2vy8ZdaZwWm_Jmf477D5hxwQwheKasoTCCe1X7l7CSsJrWy7EolsAJUdMzfLOiTs0_X9EBBcHnSav4Pt5aXWTL0pd-Sa174WKjYz9K/s500/cursed6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="342" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVncYkB80hKIQnKZONyzqGaflDKGSrkz7Vt5FSveKBz1W5t_6402hIaXW_KSH68X5cvyCibsW2Tp_gW0AOVD2vy8ZdaZwWm_Jmf477D5hxwQwheKasoTCCe1X7l7CSsJrWy7EolsAJUdMzfLOiTs0_X9EBBcHnSav4Pt5aXWTL0pd-Sa174WKjYz9K/s16000/cursed6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Morbid curiosity haunts <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Crow</b> (1994), now a part of that decade’s cycle of superhero films,
because actor Brandon Lee died while making it and this movie was expected to
establish his career as Hollywood’s top action star. For this gothic drama of
death and resurrection, it’s particularly notable that Brandon’s father, martial
arts legend Bruce Lee, also died on the brink of international stardom, while
making a kung fu movie. Rob Cohen’s excellent biographical drama, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story</i> (1993), adds
details to the Lee family’s mythology fuelled by tabloid hysteria, and hyped by
conspiracy theories of Chinese-mafia plots. Michael Berryman speaks honestly
about his casting as 'Skull Cowboy' for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Crow</i>, and laments how mistakes were made on the set, but denies the
possibility any curse. In the end, we might wonder if completion of stalled-by-tragedy
movies following the loss of cast members is truly honourable or not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A second season of </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Cursed
Films</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> looks at </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">The Wizard Of Oz</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Rosemary’s Baby</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Stalker</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">The Serpent And The
Rainbow</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, and </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Cannibal Holocaust</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">.</span></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-27798983348547290232022-12-01T08:55:00.004+00:002022-12-01T14:06:22.571+00:00Mad God<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEKBRwyksJm_B3nEQ6uBtFenM4Zkt3RG5QZwbr-9iDu1sVdLMniWPvOlRvIORcqJbgkJM_GnUCZOloHT-iHZDuW6KUe2CTtCz9Kfr-xq_S-mq3rQbW4cANLqeWt6ck9_GJTdSDh_q90115Ts_5On3ZN8KkmcFtn--i2JIaenjhMqFcBJdZ22X9Xf7m/s565/MadGod.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="565" data-original-width="400" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEKBRwyksJm_B3nEQ6uBtFenM4Zkt3RG5QZwbr-9iDu1sVdLMniWPvOlRvIORcqJbgkJM_GnUCZOloHT-iHZDuW6KUe2CTtCz9Kfr-xq_S-mq3rQbW4cANLqeWt6ck9_GJTdSDh_q90115Ts_5On3ZN8KkmcFtn--i2JIaenjhMqFcBJdZ22X9Xf7m/w280-h395/MadGod.jpg" width="280" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Alex Cox, Niketa Roman, and <span class="itemprop"><span style="color: #333333;">Satish Ratakonda</span></span> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Phil Tippett</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">84 minutes (18) 2021 </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Acorn / Shudder Blu-ray<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 5th December] <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>9/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Is the curious art of stop-motion animation due for
a revival? It’s not often that animated films get adult certificates, but <b>Mad God</b> is a prime example of a
winningly experimental form. It’s dazzling movie-making by Phil Tippett, who
did stop-motion effects for ED-209 in <i>RoboCop</i>
(1987), and its gloomy sci-fi horror is more than inventive enough to deliver a
weirdly composed, wholly anarchic, underworld mythos, influenced by Czech directors Karel
Zeman and Jan Svankmajer, and also David Lynch’s amazingly bizarre <i>Eraserhead</i> (1977). There’s plenty of
muttering, and highly emotive vocal effects, but no dialogue to denote
characters. Expressions or body-language conceal as much as they communicate
directly, yet lots of brutal judgements and obvious misery are messaged. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB3l1-NM9IeRCybFgapRztCIUaSFu-flJH76Anub1BAgQ83KjcyZumMWmYU2STBthJTQHBKdwnyzyytJKBBKcwDgKd_ffnWkg3Ru23odybtueCtdsyZfidoYWobY9v_IhnSkgWpw5ilkvRb18vq8qu8_Ma7hfiKyEZY82kH0s3cjPdHkMETbOOwmWO/s500/MadGod1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="314" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB3l1-NM9IeRCybFgapRztCIUaSFu-flJH76Anub1BAgQ83KjcyZumMWmYU2STBthJTQHBKdwnyzyytJKBBKcwDgKd_ffnWkg3Ru23odybtueCtdsyZfidoYWobY9v_IhnSkgWpw5ilkvRb18vq8qu8_Ma7hfiKyEZY82kH0s3cjPdHkMETbOOwmWO/s16000/MadGod1.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A
pet-project begun 30 years ago, this production was shelved when its model
animation style became unfashionable in the 1990s, as computers conquered the
studios’ tool-kits. J</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">ungian psychology is a recurring theme here, much
like anything by Jodorowsky, while writer-director Tippett crafts a dynamic yet
brooding quest-saga combo, with Art-house references and uncanny genre riffs
that emerge rapidly during a blitz-o-mation of grisly or surreal images. </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Mad God</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> concerns a ‘terrorist’ carrying
a time-bomb, but it’s a mission-movie only in the sense that a </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Quay brothers’ </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">narrative, like </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Street Of
Crocodiles</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1986), tells any kind of biographical story. Just imagine a
disturbing Hieronymus Bosch puppet-show version of something stranger called ‘Escape
From Noo-Yuck’, where nothing more than cruelty and misfortune favours the
bold.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3dcB5LfFwJky1BGYdQyhoJX9H4YR5uKUJzQp2VX0jLuMPxQiCK-V2f-rp0KWLaWTFjrGmXS-TJrbds3rRyidG80emndH7gZZf8ICt98M1uszsvg3DO2XEZ5D1_KwtDDjt9vr9JOxRp7kxYscbkwLzl-k1JkKNl42R3XTZeVt-PMNcUIBUttVr8TaV/s500/madgod2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3dcB5LfFwJky1BGYdQyhoJX9H4YR5uKUJzQp2VX0jLuMPxQiCK-V2f-rp0KWLaWTFjrGmXS-TJrbds3rRyidG80emndH7gZZf8ICt98M1uszsvg3DO2XEZ5D1_KwtDDjt9vr9JOxRp7kxYscbkwLzl-k1JkKNl42R3XTZeVt-PMNcUIBUttVr8TaV/s16000/madgod2.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6QJY7aa5EBfNmqzg_Deczaxe_Oo9HJwaEADcK3NTvfoeFjQMFp35nLk_M-sBq2z2Myx_EhIfPqAUziaNo7p3mfaae3OgTi3aQSosBhLHSJt3XrBK5AF26wGd-xlFWIaWrjsdhrSPRLC2NXQbmx-puv49_iEXVmWczML9qnSuIZ1pbWxKHitMtl2SB/s500/madgod3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6QJY7aa5EBfNmqzg_Deczaxe_Oo9HJwaEADcK3NTvfoeFjQMFp35nLk_M-sBq2z2Myx_EhIfPqAUziaNo7p3mfaae3OgTi3aQSosBhLHSJt3XrBK5AF26wGd-xlFWIaWrjsdhrSPRLC2NXQbmx-puv49_iEXVmWczML9qnSuIZ1pbWxKHitMtl2SB/s16000/madgod3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The killer descends into and through the bowels of
a hell-scape where bio-mecha terrors, and mutant grotesques, casually churn up waves of relentlessly violent splatter effects. There’s an eye-rolling despair here,
with creatures born only to die horribly struck by a meaningless fate, while
the protagonist discovers evidence of many other predecessors, and drives on
through an apocalyptic war-zone of rusty tank battles. Astonishingly eerie
black-comedy tracts readily evoke Terry Gilliam’s wildest fantasies of doomed
heroism, particularly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">12 Monkeys</i>
(1995). Alex Cox, auteur of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Repo Man</i>
(1984), essays a loony boffin displaying Coffin-Joe styled fingernails, as an apparent
dictator of a shadowy militaristic realm, far above the subterranean levels
where the cursed assassin journeys into a ghastly, gothic labyrinth of death-traps
and damnation alleys.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzBgd6oEpbmmIgJbmEmCRgce7tGFRu_sw0mD2eKYb2K6r66oZILej71FFtOklrd3nWnmflSg8bs4kGPHVluHH3wGpfjV7ty6K70IThhNobCFW4StyEzZ9YDq7rwXAN-cpeMMCx1QJ5GGQaCk91gwGNrgR6t8DQ6Q9fzUut3j7ZdphxdhTT28lS7c1/s500/madgod4.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzBgd6oEpbmmIgJbmEmCRgce7tGFRu_sw0mD2eKYb2K6r66oZILej71FFtOklrd3nWnmflSg8bs4kGPHVluHH3wGpfjV7ty6K70IThhNobCFW4StyEzZ9YDq7rwXAN-cpeMMCx1QJ5GGQaCk91gwGNrgR6t8DQ6Q9fzUut3j7ZdphxdhTT28lS7c1/s16000/madgod4.jpeg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2YvrchDGyDREU043inSLpJrdne6MYcGA8gZAFFYeFcg5qFXd513vkFR5Kos5rzM-7-4ESYF_5z3OO_v7xM5LuPoyEGMduqvzyNcVOJYL4R5pPU86d-Tem2mSEYlhqZQFoQHrmQJzCnJsyQZ6wjRz0P6W6P_HRs-qkx5sPcIGmCpW0332M3t1B6v9X/s500/madgod5.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="241" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2YvrchDGyDREU043inSLpJrdne6MYcGA8gZAFFYeFcg5qFXd513vkFR5Kos5rzM-7-4ESYF_5z3OO_v7xM5LuPoyEGMduqvzyNcVOJYL4R5pPU86d-Tem2mSEYlhqZQFoQHrmQJzCnJsyQZ6wjRz0P6W6P_HRs-qkx5sPcIGmCpW0332M3t1B6v9X/s16000/madgod5.jpeg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mad God</i> is like garage-Harryhausen meets grind-house
Giger, bored with fantastic alien erotica. A nurse (Niketa Roman) rescues a mewling newborn... something, but even that nightmare
nativity offers nothing to hope for as this multicultural wasteland devours any
chance of evolution. Picture factory-ruins extruding huge slabs, perhaps
cousins of those famed monoliths of Kubrick’s magnum opus, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2001: A Space Odyssey</i> (1968), for a line soon toppled over like giant dominoes,
and later tumbling like cosmic dice thrown out of a yawning Black Hole.
Tippett’s masterly approach to mysteriously horrific absurdities ensures a 100% cult movie. Don’t
blink, or you’ll miss some amusing bits of extraordinarily gruesome fun.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjopLTTFDYlijn0lmeWEYTPlk8edt03S6K4XdGLRvd7JKXjrLWbblseSYCs6UL4hV58JgK2LzrGh3Tt-wdUY3kYsOnFZi_K9SO2KFsHmRtg0mkByBaLw20XetloA23niQ3qr-QMSTbYH14Vh2FB0XqTXeAG8e1bGEh0_3Kec87TeUD8HOverbhXcZ5k/s500/madgod6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjopLTTFDYlijn0lmeWEYTPlk8edt03S6K4XdGLRvd7JKXjrLWbblseSYCs6UL4hV58JgK2LzrGh3Tt-wdUY3kYsOnFZi_K9SO2KFsHmRtg0mkByBaLw20XetloA23niQ3qr-QMSTbYH14Vh2FB0XqTXeAG8e1bGEh0_3Kec87TeUD8HOverbhXcZ5k/s16000/madgod6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This excellent Blu-ray includes a first-class
package of bonus material:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
track by Phil Tippett and Guillermo del Toro</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast
& crew commentary</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Interview
with Tippett</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mad God</i> influences & inspirations</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Maya
Tippett’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Making Of Mad God</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Maya
Tippett’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Worse Than The Demon</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Academy
of Art University & <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mad God</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Behind-the-scenes
montage</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Behind-the-scenes
photo gallery</span></li></ul><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-21061214536998349742022-08-23T10:54:00.005+01:002022-08-23T10:54:43.542+01:00Dog Soldiers<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX8xiRB-6VP_a47h0oKN9ITQHh8j65kjSuYybBa4KVg6ysgEw0J_Icq2Y2mK8MFBfGwrYeBVyg7hgRsUh3418MtbGHpgyw_QAM_StQ62QWjR-VQ4b4ojUUyyIlp6eeyfbKFfoi5VSnCcgJ_rozsrR5SrcfhxyWPgk1PvpxqyIwSsuMwy0GQrpjoyDU/s633/dogsold1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="633" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX8xiRB-6VP_a47h0oKN9ITQHh8j65kjSuYybBa4KVg6ysgEw0J_Icq2Y2mK8MFBfGwrYeBVyg7hgRsUh3418MtbGHpgyw_QAM_StQ62QWjR-VQ4b4ojUUyyIlp6eeyfbKFfoi5VSnCcgJ_rozsrR5SrcfhxyWPgk1PvpxqyIwSsuMwy0GQrpjoyDU/w316-h400/dogsold1.jpg" width="316" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Sean Pertwee, Kevin McKidd, and Emma Cleasby</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Neil Marshall</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">105 minutes (15) 2002</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>9/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">review by Emma French</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The opening scene of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Dog
Soldiers</b> presents a clichéd scenario of an amorous couple in a remote spot,
far from help or other people, being brutally attacked by an unseen and
non-human predator. The reasoning behind this unimaginative start becomes a
little clearer when the soldier-protagonists arrive on the scene. The contrast
emphasises that whilst a couple of horny campers might have no chance against a
bloodthirsty group of monsters, the British army’s hardest might have a better
shot. With no particularly obvious hero, you can never be quite sure which of
the soldiers is going to make it to the end of the picture un-mauled. Given the
savagery of the first couple of attacks, the odds of any of them surviving seem
poor.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixxKmi7EaOjoSYDfSI8ojgtmMmtxSZHGWaKjjYZOKC5XYKM17uQMrb8H-gqCNf3t88Md5EtUHOYoREJ-UCJZXExVMkWIxBQem5keAxLrdV1eyP6guwFE3cHDuIcUZgTnvEZmIL85okIZKblBuwpqWAlOnFednLwCC2KLd3UrRRx31j6kpBIjNBm0vS/s500/dogsold2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixxKmi7EaOjoSYDfSI8ojgtmMmtxSZHGWaKjjYZOKC5XYKM17uQMrb8H-gqCNf3t88Md5EtUHOYoREJ-UCJZXExVMkWIxBQem5keAxLrdV1eyP6guwFE3cHDuIcUZgTnvEZmIL85okIZKblBuwpqWAlOnFednLwCC2KLd3UrRRx31j6kpBIjNBm0vS/s16000/dogsold2.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Writer and director Neil Marshall has a strange film
pedigree: he was the make-up artist for TV’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Smack The Pony</i>, and the driver on John Carpenter’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ghosts Of Mars</i>, as well as writing and
editing the 1998 feature <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Killing Time</i>,
before he made this film. Marshall’s directorial inexperience does not show and
he converts a limited budget into a distinct advantage. Fleeting images of
giant wolf-men put the CGI clone armies of George Lucas to shame. Believing
that there are real actors inside the wolf costumes adds a visceral dimension
that, back then, was difficult to recreate with computer graphics. On a
gigantic budget this was the lesson Ridley Scott took to heart in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gladiator</i>, comprehending that CGI should
provide enhancement rather than the whole picture. Old-fashioned gore and
suspense is still hard to beat.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBaIxWin2NIxszI_1mfh6f-9QoKOjD5iMxrVCuCZNorPbfnL1S6vNz6JvnPkxJyiC_bBhrA7Hr-o6K5kulNWuNX-olt-XSCUIcq2WQ98wjmiq2KZFzIUy30Maj96quWFJd-HXcBJN104ffCm7dcNnCgkuhHUAB6J9HJHDEieAUhUMrfbkOKgbHkuVt/s500/dogsold3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBaIxWin2NIxszI_1mfh6f-9QoKOjD5iMxrVCuCZNorPbfnL1S6vNz6JvnPkxJyiC_bBhrA7Hr-o6K5kulNWuNX-olt-XSCUIcq2WQ98wjmiq2KZFzIUy30Maj96quWFJd-HXcBJN104ffCm7dcNnCgkuhHUAB6J9HJHDEieAUhUMrfbkOKgbHkuVt/s16000/dogsold3.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sean Pertwee is surprisingly good as Sergeant Harry Wells,
and rather suits the role of a partially-disembowelled action-man. Chris Robson
is the most memorable and endearing of the other soldiers as jocular Geordie
Private Joe Kirkley. Emma Cleasby provides some bland but welcome female
interest as Megan in an otherwise testosterone-stuffed film. As with the John
Landis classic </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">An American Werewolf In
London</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, there is a degree of poignancy too. Half man as well as half
animal, for the werewolves their condition is a handicap and an affliction that
they must philosophise, theorise, and live with, as best they can.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is good to see a British film competing so effectively
against the slew of franchised Hollywood’s ironic horror output. It’s evident
from the very start that this is a straightforward, worthy contribution to subgenre
movies (that includes </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Predator</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">), although
there is plenty of humour here too. Perfect for Halloween viewing, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Dog Soldiers</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> fares as well on the small
screen as it did at the box-office.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cuXS8n9wOFm96hpK6wrChrEFQvDTc26iQX1dF5CmAjfYaHMQ5_i78noeHQ1fXzpokJhX2EdGZsabvQH9dc7z3AL4JsKXSKxWIlx_BNOrIrcogyOXYYoW9J1ldeSTTVYH3QYDMk-sfKzXdld0PBP9ODc87J68PjFgun4wS3VQlB7XnhOy_GnfwvIB/s500/dogsold4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cuXS8n9wOFm96hpK6wrChrEFQvDTc26iQX1dF5CmAjfYaHMQ5_i78noeHQ1fXzpokJhX2EdGZsabvQH9dc7z3AL4JsKXSKxWIlx_BNOrIrcogyOXYYoW9J1ldeSTTVYH3QYDMk-sfKzXdld0PBP9ODc87J68PjFgun4wS3VQlB7XnhOy_GnfwvIB/s16000/dogsold4.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><span style="font-size: large;">Rating</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">: <b>8/10</b></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">review by Michael Lohr</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This is a very entertaining, realistic horror movie about
werewolves, the best one since John Landis’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">An
American Werewolf In London</i>, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Dog
Soldiers</i> marked a much-needed return to the traditional horror movie genre.
Written and directed by Neil Marshall, and co-produced by Christopher Figg (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Trainspotting</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hellraiser</i>), it’s a classic tale of survival, in much the same
regard as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Night Of The Living Dead</i>,
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Alien</i>. Bob Keen’s Image Effects
did a fantastic job at making the werewolves of look realistic and terrifying.
The odd thing about this film is that it contains quite a bit of humour, but
well-written humour that fits in superbly with the stark realism of the terror.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBEB5o_hIh0H0JMIOlHVTkwJllZdVH7D-5qlcDRkFMVRWlLvIXw9a5Cp91uhsi18NYYPkHs4XATOpTtiCyExFX9_ebH5w-zwUjlEWEL1CAVnyHGatTDj_L5lpWt8f7gVO9vRaqyzHMaqq3fPdZ8v6QR5trZIhjcGEM_E9vEtfutQMj6bidP6Yn2hd6/s500/dogsold5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="231" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBEB5o_hIh0H0JMIOlHVTkwJllZdVH7D-5qlcDRkFMVRWlLvIXw9a5Cp91uhsi18NYYPkHs4XATOpTtiCyExFX9_ebH5w-zwUjlEWEL1CAVnyHGatTDj_L5lpWt8f7gVO9vRaqyzHMaqq3fPdZ8v6QR5trZIhjcGEM_E9vEtfutQMj6bidP6Yn2hd6/s16000/dogsold5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The movie is set deep in the forests of Scotland, and stars Sean
Pertwee (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Event Horizon</i>), Kevin McKidd
(<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hideous Kinky</i>), and Liam Cunningham
(<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">RKO 281</i>), as a group of soldiers are
out on a training exercise when they stumble up the bloody, gut-strewn remnants
of a ‘special ops’ camp. What ensues is two hours of panic-stricken frenzy deep
in the dark of night. The werewolves themselves were dirty, dishevelled, and
downright nasty. The cinematography is dark, moody, haunting, and splendid. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYqbWBlrCjeBNqLRQbDQaHfUG2RhHmi9E1YMKpVjoAOMHNV-ud6E_IhTEc26MHGb90-jyy0GTqffdKo9-BydYM0FRUa0oCams92YlpuwTqitDuAvInt-KNXV8hhUQdFVz7sd3D8rqrj8CInUpRsEvOkaCRB9vK5vdZzpji90wDHot-MJ660KY7rCsw/s500/dogsold6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="298" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYqbWBlrCjeBNqLRQbDQaHfUG2RhHmi9E1YMKpVjoAOMHNV-ud6E_IhTEc26MHGb90-jyy0GTqffdKo9-BydYM0FRUa0oCams92YlpuwTqitDuAvInt-KNXV8hhUQdFVz7sd3D8rqrj8CInUpRsEvOkaCRB9vK5vdZzpji90wDHot-MJ660KY7rCsw/s16000/dogsold6.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">I
heard some American critics say that this movie was ‘too British’ for their tastes.
Well, I’m American and I say, sod off you daft buggers! If this movie were US
made, we no doubt would have had Britney Spears prancing about with enough
boy-band cameos to make me gag on my popcorn. Simply, this is the best horror
film that I have seen in a long time.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNS5bVPEfuLVv7LYnxkqEMEODNfto2BDekk3V7B7mt_JTvLAKdJWW9LojEXXz2W33E1XR79Q0ZX33cO62z2VYU57MsHy7bB2Mb2GwNaU7x9DJDivZQUXcoa5HYjP90YPRXFpr_q52FjGZFuO3onfmsyl8aeXM5VQWuRw5u-e511AHXdzeqoQcU6D2/s500/dogsold7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="327" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNS5bVPEfuLVv7LYnxkqEMEODNfto2BDekk3V7B7mt_JTvLAKdJWW9LojEXXz2W33E1XR79Q0ZX33cO62z2VYU57MsHy7bB2Mb2GwNaU7x9DJDivZQUXcoa5HYjP90YPRXFpr_q52FjGZFuO3onfmsyl8aeXM5VQWuRw5u-e511AHXdzeqoQcU6D2/s16000/dogsold7.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Disc extras:</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">This restoration for 4K UHD (with Dolby Vision HDR) release
is approved by director Marshall, and cinematographer Sam McCurdy</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archive commentary by Marshall</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archive commentary with producers David E. Allen and Brian O’Toole</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">New commentary by Alison Peirse</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Werewolves, Crawlers, Cannibals, And More</i> - new 40-minute
interview with Neil Marshall</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>A History Of Lycanthropy</i> - Gavin Baddeley on werewolf cinema</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Werewolves, Folklore, And Cinema</i> - video essay by Mikel J.
Koven</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Werewolves vs. Soldiers</i> - making of </span><i style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Dog Soldiers</b></i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> with Neil Marshall, producers Christopher Figg and
Keith Bell, actors Sean Pertwee, Kevin McKidd, Darren Morfitt, Leslie Simpson,
and Emma Cleasby, special-effects artist Bob Keen, and more.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>A Cottage In The Woods </i>- interview with production designer
Simon Bowles</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Combat </b>- short film by Neil Marshall</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Deleted scenes and gag reel with optional commentary by
Marshall, plus trailers, photo gallery. </span></li></ul><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIOvynJLhdguiUYQhgRM47xeuKz_MnWRQIDuMLfYuDFsOgQm5O0JkI8T7oJQcSJ3nnt7mxhmVkbGfbO_q5B7R_AAFCYlhLe1qYOfvJZ4e09UGxr_VPchEyghCJr3UwzbluQYlmKTR2zv9e95yWegPN39plQwfIIUwZuzZ_mZKKqkc4ONjcJ-gBRPuF/s500/dogsold9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="412" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIOvynJLhdguiUYQhgRM47xeuKz_MnWRQIDuMLfYuDFsOgQm5O0JkI8T7oJQcSJ3nnt7mxhmVkbGfbO_q5B7R_AAFCYlhLe1qYOfvJZ4e09UGxr_VPchEyghCJr3UwzbluQYlmKTR2zv9e95yWegPN39plQwfIIUwZuzZ_mZKKqkc4ONjcJ-gBRPuF/s16000/dogsold9.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-91261124823337774552021-11-08T10:45:00.001+00:002021-11-08T10:45:54.625+00:00Every Last One Of Them<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YDHn6MiinU4/YYj-AlCx8yI/AAAAAAAAGGA/C8nTPAE2zEQtM2AElIwctxdtDAqmpYjHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s653/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="653" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YDHn6MiinU4/YYj-AlCx8yI/AAAAAAAAGGA/C8nTPAE2zEQtM2AElIwctxdtDAqmpYjHQCLcBGAsYHQ/w276-h400/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem1.jpg" width="276" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Richard Dreyfuss, Paul Sloan, and Jake Weber </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Christian Semsa </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">82 minutes (15) 2021 <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">101 Films DVD Region 2 </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>6/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Jeff Young </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As if he’s being starved of headline roles in studio
productions - much like Nicolas Cage and Bruce Willis, nowadays - faded
Hollywood star of the 1970s Richard Dreyfuss lends his familiar combination of
wits and gravitas to lower-budget movies such as the recent feminist manhunt <i><a href="http://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2021/05/daughter-of-wolf.html" target="_blank">Daughter Of The Wolf</a></i>. Even on autopilot,
his intelligence and intensity remains watchable as Dreyfuss cruise through his
seventies. In this likeably atmospheric shoot ’em-up thriller, he plays Murphy,
a former military commander and mentor to an ex-soldier and desperate hero.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HzjF4pBJfag/YYj-ZfBE8QI/AAAAAAAAGGI/YfdYkNRAEsE579w0zncweS0IIfs22XC1ACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="254" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HzjF4pBJfag/YYj-ZfBE8QI/AAAAAAAAGGI/YfdYkNRAEsE579w0zncweS0IIfs22XC1ACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Every Last One Of
Them</b> starts with a bar-room brawl centred on the stranger in town, a serious
tough guy from Vegas, Jake Hunter (Paul Sloan, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Stiletto</i>), who quickly escapes from custody, and steals a police
car to continue searching for his missing daughter. Of course, he’s driven to
become a proverbial one-man army, clearly following the subgenre trend
established by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rambo</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Commando</i>, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Taken</i>, along with other such exploitation-cinema inspirations.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x5kFjTM4oOE/YYj-kwXClVI/AAAAAAAAGGM/1m1iqqhS-6EXPx65dh3DFbqh_ycRHNcpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x5kFjTM4oOE/YYj-kwXClVI/AAAAAAAAGGM/1m1iqqhS-6EXPx65dh3DFbqh_ycRHNcpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Chief villains here are Nichols (Jake Weber, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Those Who Want Me Dead</i>), and his weirdly-psycho
sister Maggie (Taryn Manning, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hawaii
Five-0</i> remake), who are the main targets for Jake’s instinctive suspicions
and unstoppable wrath. In pursuit of local justice, sheriff Kim (Mary Christina
Brown) is firmly, if not formally, on hero Jake’s side. Michael Madsen does his
usual character-actor stuff in a minor supporting role.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DCFQDfDiNxw/YYj-3xSSLkI/AAAAAAAAGGY/O54WOvCcMfEYdZ2e0t5e11UU54-TtgX8QCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="230" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DCFQDfDiNxw/YYj-3xSSLkI/AAAAAAAAGGY/O54WOvCcMfEYdZ2e0t5e11UU54-TtgX8QCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ELOOT</i> delivers
a grim & moody build-up to its standard revenger plot, with extra layers of
intrigue that expose county political corruption. Christian Sesma, maker of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vigilante Diaries</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mind Blown</i>, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2021/03/take-back.html" target="_blank">Take Back</a></i>,
directs with an eye for sleazy imagery and messily violent details. With its
haunting tragedy already done, and then revealed in flashbacks, what’s most
important here is the headlong chase towards a gun-point reckoning of
quasi-operatic terrorism, bolstered by a suitably noisy music score, before
some bloody do-or-die retribution.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g82AqaZGLvg/YYj_Hltq99I/AAAAAAAAGGg/LDHwFvefumoqCwZ0oDk5fPpwsnhPsf8vQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="233" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g82AqaZGLvg/YYj_Hltq99I/AAAAAAAAGGg/LDHwFvefumoqCwZ0oDk5fPpwsnhPsf8vQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Despite working under pandemic constraints and often being
limited by filming back-yard scenery, there’s plenty of technical and twisty-narrative
evidence here that resourceful Semsa keeps on improvising as a slick B-movie
stylist, if never quite a genuine auteur, balancing cool and cruel characters
and many action-packed sequences, with each new effort.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R4EavFAHTpc/YYj_QmetR6I/AAAAAAAAGGk/XW1k2vjknEseYPiu22hZhOmKd7dEktgdACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R4EavFAHTpc/YYj_QmetR6I/AAAAAAAAGGk/XW1k2vjknEseYPiu22hZhOmKd7dEktgdACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Every%2BLast%2BOne%2Bof%2BThem6.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-36689299291992969372021-09-19T14:39:00.003+01:002021-09-19T23:05:02.964+01:00Monster Hunter<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pAc5D2wjwsE/YUc6qHAEWmI/AAAAAAAAGFA/EwGkpTrjeb8rCb05EeF8tVqmG04m1T4MwCLcBGAsYHQ/s534/monsterhunt1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pAc5D2wjwsE/YUc6qHAEWmI/AAAAAAAAGFA/EwGkpTrjeb8rCb05EeF8tVqmG04m1T4MwCLcBGAsYHQ/w338-h400/monsterhunt1.jpg" width="338" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Milla Jovovich, Tony Jaa, and Ron Perlman</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Paul W.S. Anderson</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">103 minutes (12) 2020</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sony Blu-ray <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 20th September] </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">While searching for US troops missing in the desert, a team
led by Captain Artemis (Milla Jovovich), are caught in an uncanny storm. Magically, they are transported to the fantasy realm of a parallel world, they discover strange ‘dinosaur’
bones, and find gigantic beasts roaming a sinister landscape. Against otherworldly
shocks and unstoppable attacks their standard American weapons prove no more an
effective defence than sing-along camaraderie, and soon the injured Artemis is left
alone. Jovovich does her best as this feisty super-heroine, while she abandons Hollywood
glamour in favour of a wholly grungy and gritty adventure of endurance for this
military-action movie. Survival in this weird New World means using a bullet’s
gunpowder to cauterise wounds.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jClbrGVME5U/YUc7PYihgsI/AAAAAAAAGFI/yY9E4YagpaUd1uFz2oi-qMoHDJVZ-ikJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/monsterhunt2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jClbrGVME5U/YUc7PYihgsI/AAAAAAAAGFI/yY9E4YagpaUd1uFz2oi-qMoHDJVZ-ikJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/monsterhunt2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Her recovery is enabled by the Hunter (Tony Jaa), a wily native
with oversized weaponry. Once billed as a new Bruce Lee (see <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ong Bak</i>, 2003), Thai martial artist Jaa
now tackles more diverse genre roles to become the new Jet Li. The language
barrier makes dialogue in-jokes from some tough-talking clichés of typical
actioners. Although always watchable, Ron Perlman joins the cast as the Admiral
(whose role is ‘Mr Exposition’), and he regales us with tales of a fallen ancient
civilisation, while his old galleon sails blithely over sandy seas. This trio join
forces for the dragon-slaying job that builds up to an effects-laden climax, just before
Artemis falls through a mysterious vortex and returns home, but her big problems
with monsters are only just beginning.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yU4rKTI5InE/YUc7gGGE07I/AAAAAAAAGFQ/tNthWUIdP1Uzd-0RQd-GwTZ7RwYPG7zEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/monsterhunt3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yU4rKTI5InE/YUc7gGGE07I/AAAAAAAAGFQ/tNthWUIdP1Uzd-0RQd-GwTZ7RwYPG7zEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/monsterhunt3.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yy7b24svnH4/YUc7nuuY0MI/AAAAAAAAGFU/7q8vIyvl0OgiBIi5ysnproEp68fy6N_xwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/monsterhunt4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yy7b24svnH4/YUc7nuuY0MI/AAAAAAAAGFU/7q8vIyvl0OgiBIi5ysnproEp68fy6N_xwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/monsterhunt4.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Based on a videogame, this scenario offers a witty fusion
of Toho’s varied kaiju franchise and sci-fi movies such as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pitch Black</i> (2000), merged with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Enemy
Mine</i> (1985). Despite a lack of SF world-building, like in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Alien</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Dune</i>, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Starship Troopers</i>
franchises, or the earthbound series of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Tremors</i>
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jurassic Park</i>), this hyper-dramatic form
of storytelling hardly needs any rationalist explanations for its generic
mega-fauna. Not when the mad rush of inexplicable events and savage confrontations
deliver thrillingly vast spectacle to delight fans of Doyle’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lost World</i> romanticism, and/ or Burroughs’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Barsoom</i> - as epitomised by Disney’s under-rated <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John Carter</i> (2012).</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eup2DzEcqhU/YUc7yzrj15I/AAAAAAAAGFc/ppHasA84CvoaAw4Lj24e4Ba4zMw1UsocACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/monsterhunt5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="202" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eup2DzEcqhU/YUc7yzrj15I/AAAAAAAAGFc/ppHasA84CvoaAw4Lj24e4Ba4zMw1UsocACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/monsterhunt5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x94GqPkfacA/YUc78YwDpxI/AAAAAAAAGFk/O3R25lWxMzMr592tUJz9z2kFHlrXEB9nACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/monsterhunt7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x94GqPkfacA/YUc78YwDpxI/AAAAAAAAGFk/O3R25lWxMzMr592tUJz9z2kFHlrXEB9nACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/monsterhunt7.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Monster Hunter</b>
displays ravenous critters of all sorts. None of them are pleasant in any way,
even if they’re relatively harmless herbivores. Further plot-twists suggest a
sequel, or two, might eventually appear, while an (inevitable?) mid-credits
teaser sequence hints at such developments. Undoubtedly, there are quirky details
and odd elements here that only game-players are very likely to appreciate, but
this impressive cinematic adaptation delivers more than enough superheroic
thrills, and extraordinary visual effects, to please discerning fans or
demanding viewers of pulp sci-fi styled fantasy.</span></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-61976598422404497772021-09-07T14:52:00.003+01:002021-09-07T15:03:33.304+01:00Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kDi57Dbv_y8/YTdqmWZUOlI/AAAAAAAAGEQ/-A7YoEHbvDEyAW6kfClLLJTTB34rpCdsgCLcBGAsYHQ/s689/hitmansWBG1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="689" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kDi57Dbv_y8/YTdqmWZUOlI/AAAAAAAAGEQ/-A7YoEHbvDEyAW6kfClLLJTTB34rpCdsgCLcBGAsYHQ/w261-h400/hitmansWBG1.jpg" width="261" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, and Salma
Hayek</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Patrick Hughes</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">116 minutes (15) 2021</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Lions Gate Blu-ray</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Steven Hampton</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">After his debut
feature, enjoyable Australian western <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Red
Hill</i> (2010), director Patrick Hughes graduated from Ozploitation to Stallone’s
franchise for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Expendables 3</i>
(2014), and so established his genre proficiency and shoot-’em-up credentials as
a maker of big-budget, Hollywood star-packed, popular adventures. Hughes’
comedy actioner <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Hitman’s Bodyguard</i>
(2017) was a rather slicker mismatched-buddy movie for Ryan (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Deadpool</i>) Reynolds as “Triple-A rated”
security expert Bryce, caught in the danger zone between an Interpol manhunt
and Euro enemies of an escaped assassin, free-wheeling Kincaid (Samuel L.
Jackson), whose wife Sonia (Salma Hayek) proves more formidable than him. Action-audiences
cheered, happy viewers laughed at a winningly romanticised finale, but a few
snooty highbrow critics only sighed, as if they wondered: “Where are you going
with this?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DAaDVySEc1Y/YTdq1zXlyOI/AAAAAAAAGEY/NxIknFFkcRY1b2aNDnAQLK5_py96b8VeQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/hitmansWBG2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DAaDVySEc1Y/YTdq1zXlyOI/AAAAAAAAGEY/NxIknFFkcRY1b2aNDnAQLK5_py96b8VeQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/hitmansWBG2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Delayed by COVID, for a year, sequel movie <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Hitman’s Wife’s
Bodyguard</b> reunites leads Reynolds, Jackson, and Hayek, while also casting Morgan
Freeman and Antonio Banderas, along for this even wilder ride, centred on deadly
plots by vengeful Greek terrorists, after Kincaid needs rescuing from Mafia goons. Other
characters drift into focus during this increasingly manic farce, but its trio of
stars maintain the illusion of consistency well enough to always be at the centre
of our attention. There’s a non-stop stream of trashy livewire banter, numerous movie
references (including <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Overboard</i>, 1987),
and, as before, this new mission’s crazier stunts and dollops of slapstick humour owe plenty to big franchises, like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Die Hard</i>
(with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mad Max</i> flavour), but somewhat less
to James Bond, except in a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Johnny English</i>
styled parody of 007 antics.</span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tBZvOrkhiXQ/YTdrDEwpX8I/AAAAAAAAGEc/RJIQNJTlo_ITRh17ki-EYGTENDd3Hi89wCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/hitmansWBG3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="209" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tBZvOrkhiXQ/YTdrDEwpX8I/AAAAAAAAGEc/RJIQNJTlo_ITRh17ki-EYGTENDd3Hi89wCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/hitmansWBG3.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YsQFFaPFtrQ/YTdrNtNhB8I/AAAAAAAAGEk/rBvNPWexvtYfudVVrmcl2p4Putd9DwPDgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/hitmansWBG4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="208" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YsQFFaPFtrQ/YTdrNtNhB8I/AAAAAAAAGEk/rBvNPWexvtYfudVVrmcl2p4Putd9DwPDgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/hitmansWBG4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Stereotypes are very boldly over-hyped towards outrageous iconoclasm, and few players here are depicted
as </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">theatrical satire better than Banderas’ loony baddie-billionaire
Aristotle, who openly wears ostentatious wealth on his tailored sleeves in garish
displays of cringe-couture. Bryce and Sonia have ‘tragic’ histories they
have tried to forget, but explored in flashback sketches with amusing punch-lines
for (extra-) larger-than-life character-building scenes. Its multi-layered
scenario romps through formats like a road-movie,
with fugitives on tour, diving through European locations into disaster-movie and, ultimately, superhero cinema, much like those cross-genre
escalations of the <i>Fast & Furious</i>
franchise. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lhd0QLF6u5w/YTdrVd-tutI/AAAAAAAAGEs/Yf-9w-50BB8nmNsMg1ZwuI6ap3wYX7HqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/hitmansWBG5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="210" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lhd0QLF6u5w/YTdrVd-tutI/AAAAAAAAGEs/Yf-9w-50BB8nmNsMg1ZwuI6ap3wYX7HqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/hitmansWBG5.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-osueRqrzia0/YTdrdg-xwjI/AAAAAAAAGE0/D3GJR-n7ywoBxha04cHuvk3cGj9gPzlrQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/hitmansWBG6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-osueRqrzia0/YTdrdg-xwjI/AAAAAAAAGE0/D3GJR-n7ywoBxha04cHuvk3cGj9gPzlrQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/hitmansWBG6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It pulls no
punches while following an </span>eccentric<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">
trend for using some hilariously inappropriate, or seemingly ‘wrong’, selections of
accompanying music and songs for sequences of hectic, splattery violence. Although
it never manages to match up to ‘insane’ levels of instantly-memorable impact
as the originator of this style, Kubrick’s SF classic<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> A Clockwork Orange</i> (1971), it does so with far better choices than
were heard in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">K</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ingsman</i> movies, and still maintains a quirky
sense of irony. Bryce (or ‘Breece’, as Sonia insists on calling him) declares, in
his close-protection trade, that “boring is always best” - but director Hughes ensures
this inherently loud and purposefully vulgar movie is never less than
watchable.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span></span></p><p><span><b><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is out on digital, DVD, Blu-ray and
4K UHD now.</span> </span></span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", serif; font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p><span><b><span style="color: black;"></span></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><b><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0Bi689IHeW0" width="320" youtube-src-id="0Bi689IHeW0"></iframe></b></span></div><p></p><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-79745774164191769932021-06-25T10:43:00.002+01:002021-06-26T12:11:22.628+01:00Murder By Decree<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6jRFMDxrCHU/YNWhhDvAnsI/AAAAAAAAF8U/m6eEuavNEmklPpYkatrkQIdL3JcJxhG6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s620/sherlock01.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="620" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6jRFMDxrCHU/YNWhhDvAnsI/AAAAAAAAF8U/m6eEuavNEmklPpYkatrkQIdL3JcJxhG6QCLcBGAsYHQ/w290-h400/sherlock01.jpg" width="290" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Christopher
Plummer, James Mason, and Donald Sutherland</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Bob Clark</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">124 minutes (12) 1979</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Studio Canal Vintage Classics Blu-ray</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 28th June] </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>8/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">London after dark. A nightmarish stalker on fogbound
streets. Women are slaughtered in Whitechapel. Gruesome death lurks in alleys
where a gothic atmosphere often blocks out sunlight, even on some beautifully
designed urban sets. Scenes on docks and wharfs are particularly effective. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Murder By Decree</b> remains the finest
film about Sherlock Holmes, here tackling his greatest (non-Arthur Conan Doyle)
crime story, the real-life scandals of the world’s prototype serial-killer,
Jack the Ripper. This very welcome hi-def edition (that includes English
subtitles) begins with an on-screen ‘trigger warning’, about its ‘historical
attitudes’ that might cause offence.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zOhI9eISOdA/YNWjAcJ-iNI/AAAAAAAAF9A/owWb3SlXEs8cGu1Gs5BLVf8kau2bbEAswCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock02.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zOhI9eISOdA/YNWjAcJ-iNI/AAAAAAAAF9A/owWb3SlXEs8cGu1Gs5BLVf8kau2bbEAswCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock02.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_KigvGZIeNA/YNWjGXvIasI/AAAAAAAAF9E/XsbmELTi0-QE7uTL-NMc3qMbnsSyy09qACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock03.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_KigvGZIeNA/YNWjGXvIasI/AAAAAAAAF9E/XsbmELTi0-QE7uTL-NMc3qMbnsSyy09qACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock03.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Bob Clark’s admirably straightforward direction benefits
from the efforts of a superb cast, who are more than a match for the leads of Herbert
Ross’ stylishly eccentric <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Seven-Per-Cent
Solution</i> (1976), where an addicted Holmes met Freud. Although,
traditionally, Sherlock has been played by top British actors, it’s fascinating
to see how well Canadian star <span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Christopher
Plummer (who died in February 2021), portrays the most celebrated of fictional
detectives. As Dr Watson, the usually formidable James Mason is also excellent,
with a supporting performance so confident, like he’s part of a timeless
double-act, that this pair illustrate a genuine friendship as few partnerships
from 221B Baker Street ever managed before, or since. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EMrH4JK5fwI/YNWjP9N0G8I/AAAAAAAAF9M/woCYTLkjuyY4Zfp6YJ8JH5ciG62y2I2RQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="254" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EMrH4JK5fwI/YNWjP9N0G8I/AAAAAAAAF9M/woCYTLkjuyY4Zfp6YJ8JH5ciG62y2I2RQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock04.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vs-04bKK-yw/YNWjVWlh_SI/AAAAAAAAF9Q/ary_9cDgnPEYVICazwirAnMmP1r2D7GqACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock05.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="273" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vs-04bKK-yw/YNWjVWlh_SI/AAAAAAAAF9Q/ary_9cDgnPEYVICazwirAnMmP1r2D7GqACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock05.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Prompted by local
merchants to investigate the East End murders, Sherlock </span>consults the psychic
medium Lees (Donald Sutherland), a man with haunted eyes who claims to have
visions of the Ripper. Scotland Yard’s own dogged policeman Lestrade is played
by Frank Finlay, returning to the role he had in the movie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Study In Terror</i> (1965), a previous version of this Ripper
mythology. Case-book policeman Inspector Foxborough (David Hemmings), fronts a
secret plot by radicals against the monarchy, while Sir Charles Warren (Anthony
Quayle) adopts a stridently corrupt position as Holmes’ authoritarian nemesis, protecting
a source of ghastly mutilations.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s8QjGsbrNWo/YNWjkBtS4fI/AAAAAAAAF9c/oAINE25CtVoZrm2NAv255aQQ-mgbIxBZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock06.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="285" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s8QjGsbrNWo/YNWjkBtS4fI/AAAAAAAAF9c/oAINE25CtVoZrm2NAv255aQQ-mgbIxBZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock06.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AjwiItYcSc4/YNWjqKGujAI/AAAAAAAAF9g/FuG9sfRBwC8W1TmBTP8wtqehJxbg3nVkwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock07.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="273" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AjwiItYcSc4/YNWjqKGujAI/AAAAAAAAF9g/FuG9sfRBwC8W1TmBTP8wtqehJxbg3nVkwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock07.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Holmes takes on a chimney-sweep disguise. Dr Watson gets himself arrested. Crushingly traumatised victim Annie Crook (scene-stealer Genevieve
Bujold) is barely coherent, and committed to an asylum. Despite a balancing of spontaneity
in its comedy-drama with creepy mystery-horrors, this Victoriana movie avoids the
grisly slasher mentality, as explored in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">From
Hell</i> (2001), except for just a few scenes of bloody violence. Atypically, melancholy
heroism emerges from gallantly re-active desperation, rather than any astute
planning or keen-eyed judgements. Holmes is nominally polite in society but rather
less coldly calculating. Plummer makes him far more compassionate, and too
intelligently liberal for Tory snobs when he’s quietly dismissive of titled
toffs. Obviously, Plummer is the people’s Sherlock. </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MiJhVdkF5yM/YNWj2jlLxSI/AAAAAAAAF9k/ZmmIrmLU_FQydgxVGuW01c1kO3hbuHDsACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock08.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MiJhVdkF5yM/YNWj2jlLxSI/AAAAAAAAF9k/ZmmIrmLU_FQydgxVGuW01c1kO3hbuHDsACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock08.jpg" /></a></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p12MKBzmEDo/YNWj99qlnZI/AAAAAAAAF9s/9s9UOptBGEQQBP-say-DRtxaUWMQDb39QCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock09.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="277" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p12MKBzmEDo/YNWj99qlnZI/AAAAAAAAF9s/9s9UOptBGEQQBP-say-DRtxaUWMQDb39QCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock09.jpg" /></a></div></span></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">From a wonderful bit of character-building about Watson
eating a last pea, to an ultimate confrontation with a sinister conspiracy of a
Freemasons order, this movie scales up from a wholly mundane modernity, to an
esoteric and yet compelling answer to London’s most infamous unsolved crimes. “Imagine
a more malign influence at work.” Clearly, this most human champion of all the
Holmes on screen feels obliged to speak truth to power. For a negotiated showdown
with the Prime Minister (John Gielgud), the soloing Holmes asserts, “I would
prefer some more reliable authority”, when only token ‘justice’ appears
possible.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F_ytaeh20M8/YNWkHfxjNrI/AAAAAAAAF90/SpsLhQStunU31BNfRQdL8draNHz3K2HEwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/sherlock10.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F_ytaeh20M8/YNWkHfxjNrI/AAAAAAAAF90/SpsLhQStunU31BNfRQdL8draNHz3K2HEwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/sherlock10.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-39212610346640538962021-06-23T11:42:00.004+01:002021-06-23T12:25:03.062+01:00The Babadook<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9StGJDHdku0/YNMMRy9UKXI/AAAAAAAAF7c/g9ernkw_H5EniyBOsjBTVIowOgj7g7icACLcBGAsYHQ/s581/Babadook1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9StGJDHdku0/YNMMRy9UKXI/AAAAAAAAF7c/g9ernkw_H5EniyBOsjBTVIowOgj7g7icACLcBGAsYHQ/w310-h400/Babadook1.jpg" width="310" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Essie Davis, Noah
Wiseman, and Daniel Henshall</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Jennifer Kent</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">94 minutes (15) 2014</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Second Sight 4K Ultra HD<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">[Released 26th July]<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Expanded
from the 11-minute B&W short movie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Monster</i>
(2005), witty Australian chiller <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Babadook</b> is writer-director Jennifer Kent’s feature-length debut. A marvellously
compact effort, its plot is centred on a mysterious pop-up picture-book - about
a weirdly intrusive stranger, that’s not a very wise choice as bedtime reading for
any little boy already prone to worrisome nightmares. Six-year-old orphan Samuel
(wonderfully played by newcomer Noah Wiseman) irritates his mother Amelia
(Essie Davis, from Billy O’Brien’s Irish horror movie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Isolation</i>), unable to cope with her son’s increasingly unruly
behaviour. Without a wink of sleep, her depression worsens rapidly as the
cartoonish, and yet menacing, ‘Mr Babadook’ looms up from the shadows to
admirably surrealistic effect.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k8fTS954-lo/YNMNA_3nAJI/AAAAAAAAF7k/Af7h3G54-pAVLgLhBq8c57NrTTqob1yRwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Babadook2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="262" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k8fTS954-lo/YNMNA_3nAJI/AAAAAAAAF7k/Af7h3G54-pAVLgLhBq8c57NrTTqob1yRwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Babadook2.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-waMAG7FvU-4/YNMNKJkzcuI/AAAAAAAAF7o/Yati7cA3hDIMz8sVMvrWsw3aRiZ45-cBACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Babadook3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-waMAG7FvU-4/YNMNKJkzcuI/AAAAAAAAF7o/Yati7cA3hDIMz8sVMvrWsw3aRiZ45-cBACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Babadook3.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When
Amelia’s maternal neuroses lead to psychotic episodes, this becomes a delicious
frightener of domestic terror and mental disturbance, fuelled by TV of genre
horrors and epic toothaches. Young Sam fights his mum’s apparent possession
with various <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Home Alone</i> tricks and
makeshift weapons. Sadly, after building up a considerable momentum, Kent’s
movie falters and almost flat-lines with its bargain-priced poltergeist
showdown, as the screaming Amelia conquers her fear (with the Oz power of
she-la, or something) and practically tames the black-hat demon. It’s a clever
surprise, and a twist that’s fully in keeping with her original short film
(helpfully included on this disc), but I couldn’t help wondering if a wholly darker,
more pessimistic, ending might have worked rather better. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yBPG-HcvCao/YNMNWEWXu0I/AAAAAAAAF7w/qFSD5Yrl0q8FD7_Cs2gcjRSSt9MdDUe4QCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Babadook4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yBPG-HcvCao/YNMNWEWXu0I/AAAAAAAAF7w/qFSD5Yrl0q8FD7_Cs2gcjRSSt9MdDUe4QCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Babadook4.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K1XrG_omjq4/YNMNdb1aHTI/AAAAAAAAF74/HG0w6-mr_dMP1rttvNWCeT8yXd0ksFYrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Babadook5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="228" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K1XrG_omjq4/YNMNdb1aHTI/AAAAAAAAF74/HG0w6-mr_dMP1rttvNWCeT8yXd0ksFYrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Babadook5.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In
the end, though, this is a haunted-house melodrama partly about struggles to overcome
the crushing distress of grief and, as such, the movie is both artistically extraordinary as
a moody genre piece, and satisfyingly worthwhile as a reflection on modern
widowhood, stranded amidst uncaring relatives and unsympathetic neighbours. Davis’
performance is emotionally raw, at times, but leavened by directorial humour
that embraces the styling of typical art-house cinema. Kent remixes that
familiar European brand, imperfectly, but very enjoyably, switching
effortlessly between hysterical screaming fits and wacky puppet-theatre antics.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FZtuvN23Ivk/YNMNl0YcldI/AAAAAAAAF8A/l5agnYUKXaYbCeYXwPceMdYdLKw_YzzggCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Babadook6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FZtuvN23Ivk/YNMNl0YcldI/AAAAAAAAF8A/l5agnYUKXaYbCeYXwPceMdYdLKw_YzzggCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Babadook6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">There
are similarities to Walter Salles’ spooky <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Dark
Water</i> (2005), the superior American remake of Hideo Nakata’s delirious Japanese
horror, where an innocent girl is stalked by an imaginary ‘friend’. However,
the cultural tone of this movie is determinedly Australian (yes, that’s a clip
from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Skippy</i> on Amelia’s TV) even
though the single-mother’s sleepless hallucinations conjure up mooda of hopeless
dread. Although its uncompromising 'western' story is something very different, Kent’s second movie,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2021/02/the-nightingale.html" target="_blank">The Nightingale</a></i>, continues the essentially
gloomy aesthetic.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">4K UHD disc
extras:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Commentary
track by critics Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">An
excellent package of cast-and-crew interviews... <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">This Is My House!</i> - interview with
Essie Davis (26 minutes) </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Sister</i> - interview with actress
Hayley McElhinney (10 minutes) </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Don’t Let It In</i> - interview with producer
Kristina Ceyton (12 minutes) </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Conjuring
Nightmares</i>
- interview with producer Kristian Moliere (26 minutes) </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Shaping Darkness</i> - interview with editor
Simon Njoo (14 minutes) </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">If It’s in a Name Or
In A Look</i>
- interview with designer Alex Holmes (10 minutes) </span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Bookmaker</i> - interview with designer
Alexander Juhasz (20 minutes)</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ba-Ba-Ba...Dook!</i> - interview with composer
Jed Kurzel (14 minutes) </span></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Archival
bonus material:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">They Call Him
Mister Babadook</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">:
making-of featurette (35 minutes)</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">There’s No Place
Like Home</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">:
creating the house (10 minutes)</span></li><li><i style="font-family: verdana;">Illustrating Evil</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">: creating the book
(6 minutes)</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">Special
Effects: stabbing scene (3 minutes)</span></li><li><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
Stunts (3 minutes)</span></li></ul><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OadFHORpAXM/YNMOKNjLekI/AAAAAAAAF8M/dJGLbjcC6IgdCk_qcjcjLfc-_U-0BSCsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Babadook9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OadFHORpAXM/YNMOKNjLekI/AAAAAAAAF8M/dJGLbjcC6IgdCk_qcjcjLfc-_U-0BSCsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Babadook9.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-74930675904722096472021-06-16T09:48:00.000+01:002021-06-16T09:48:28.957+01:00Shock Wave: Hong Kong Destruction<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--XXtKc9kx38/YMm4tfAArfI/AAAAAAAAF6Q/C7-2mnUgosY0nTi7_Un4b4FaapeECgxKgCLcBGAsYHQ/s596/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="596" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--XXtKc9kx38/YMm4tfAArfI/AAAAAAAAF6Q/C7-2mnUgosY0nTi7_Un4b4FaapeECgxKgCLcBGAsYHQ/w303-h400/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD.jpg" width="303" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Andy Lau, Sean Lau,
and Ni Ni</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Herman Yau</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">121 minutes (15) 2020<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cine Asia Blu-ray</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">A follow-up to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Shock
Wave</i> (aka: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Shock Wave: Tunnel</i>,
2017), stand-alone sequel <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Shock Wave:
Hong Kong Destruction</b> (aka: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Shock
Wave 2</i>), is not actually a typical disaster-movie, as its title might
suggest, but a hi-tech cop thriller that’s closer to US movies like Stephen
Hopkins’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Blown Away</i> (1994). Intrepid
bomb-disposal cop Fung (Andy Lau, from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Island
Of Greed</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">House Of Flying Daggers</i>,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Infernal Affairs</i>), rescues victims
from devices planted in their building, but a booby-trap takes off his left
leg. Five years later, terrorist gang Vendetta launch their campaign with a suicide-bomber
at a government building in Hong Kong.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dS8ZDeeYhvw/YMm5Zpt31bI/AAAAAAAAF6o/QB4mVpe7JawTsKF72m8TyQ99bXLXNDwjgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="236" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dS8ZDeeYhvw/YMm5Zpt31bI/AAAAAAAAF6o/QB4mVpe7JawTsKF72m8TyQ99bXLXNDwjgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD0.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rOR3-ro6SNo/YMm5hFYt3MI/AAAAAAAAF6s/M6FuO_-yfDQcDNUtJvZi7TnXntHuHZCjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rOR3-ro6SNo/YMm5hFYt3MI/AAAAAAAAF6s/M6FuO_-yfDQcDNUtJvZi7TnXntHuHZCjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD1.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Working as hotel porter, Fung becomes a suspect after
another bombing but he claims to have amnesia and escapes from a secure hospital,
while the counter-terrorist unit, led by Ling (Ni Ni, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Flowers Of War</i>), begins a manhunt for him, codenamed Blizzard.
Details of the baddies include a white-haired mastermind ‘Maverick’ who is just
like a 007 villain. The cleverly unfolding sci-fi plot is based on suspicion,
paranoia, implanted thoughts, and plenty of twists that keep us guessing about
corruption, memory loss, PTSD, under-cover agents, and Ling’s crucial role in a
top-secret mission. Lau is mightily impressive as Fung, playing out a
character-arc of increasingly obsessive behaviour with ranting and rages to
concern his friends and perplex his colleagues. CID Inspector Tung (Sean Lau,
so great in Johnnie To’s excellent mystery <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mad
Detective</i>) remains loyal to Fung, no matter what any of the authorities or
news media are saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zy6qx0OCM0o/YMm5s_EWpiI/AAAAAAAAF60/KV0J5rFgOi4gVNp2tcVl_KiJQ8wacyqDgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zy6qx0OCM0o/YMm5s_EWpiI/AAAAAAAAF60/KV0J5rFgOi4gVNp2tcVl_KiJQ8wacyqDgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD2.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d-Z635b5fhg/YMm50mid3KI/AAAAAAAAF68/I54ldSJ7qRcTn4wb4GlyHNibsYecLSRLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d-Z635b5fhg/YMm50mid3KI/AAAAAAAAF68/I54ldSJ7qRcTn4wb4GlyHNibsYecLSRLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD3.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">There’s crisply edited cinematography of spectacular stunts,
physical effects, and visuals, including photo-real animation combined with briskly
paced direction, making slick action sequences in this extraordinary blend of gadgets,
betrayal, duplicity, and heroic sacrifice. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">A shoot-out in a car park, a hijacked train, maintain
levels of tension, further elevated by armed police raids enacted with
clockwork precision. The tremendously exciting climax delivers a fine display of
electrifying professionalism, complete with a suspension bridge demolition for
maximum jaw-dropping style. The supremely efficient director </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Herman Yau</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (</span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Ip Man</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> sequels), somehow manages to cram
all of this, from the first sparks of anger to a city on fire, into a mere two
hours.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9w9_c7ybLKw/YMm5_9-pPRI/AAAAAAAAF7E/V0ZZVFG-XkAnzgtuu9ioTP9jVf9IXVw6wCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9w9_c7ybLKw/YMm5_9-pPRI/AAAAAAAAF7E/V0ZZVFG-XkAnzgtuu9ioTP9jVf9IXVw6wCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD5.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A1FOMVUpivU/YMm6GQNgXQI/AAAAAAAAF7M/zxspC22EweEao0Boajir-wSZXiOAFYtCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="242" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A1FOMVUpivU/YMm6GQNgXQI/AAAAAAAAF7M/zxspC22EweEao0Boajir-wSZXiOAFYtCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Shock%2BWave%2BHKD6.jpg" /></a></div>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-14844966220286553552021-06-14T14:15:00.000+01:002021-06-14T14:15:00.205+01:00Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qFZ2cKiA_rg/YMdSqimTCuI/AAAAAAAAF5Q/glpvt69cZIUqd_mIC57orzU3z2334c3iACLcBGAsYHQ/s596/Final%2BFantasy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="596" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qFZ2cKiA_rg/YMdSqimTCuI/AAAAAAAAF5Q/glpvt69cZIUqd_mIC57orzU3z2334c3iACLcBGAsYHQ/w335-h400/Final%2BFantasy1.jpg" width="335" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Voice cast (English): Steve Burton, Rachael Leigh Cook, and Steve
Staley</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Directors: Tetsuya Nomura and Takeshi Nozue</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">126 minutes (12) 2009 <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sony 4K Ultra HD</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This genre picture is entirely unreal. It was
state-of-the-art digital animation for the year it was first produced and, even
putting its fantasy content aside, it’s impossible to review this kind of movie
fairly without commenting upon the visuals and the medium they were created in.
Said images frequently achieve surprising degrees of photo-realism, with skin (though,
admittedly, too free of random blemishes for convincing people) and eyes being
presented with quite impressive clarity, opacity, reflectivity, and luminosity.
Hardware is particularly well served, throughout, whether tangled detailing on
stained or dusty ruins, or the appealing lustre of shiny futuristic machines.
Textiles are imperfectly rendered but less attention is given to drapes and looser
clothing (patterned after top designers?) than is awarded to flesh and muscle
tones.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Sadly, voice-actors (whether they speak Japanese or
English) sometimes fail to properly sell an emotive or sympathetic performance
by the animated characters half as well as relevant sound effects help convince
viewers that splashes in pools and puddles, or the random noise of rainy
weather are entirely natural and synchronous with environments. Of course,
decades of exposure to audio tracks generated entirely by sound design, and the
remarkable work of Foley artists, ensures that a majority of viewers should
have few problems in accepting digitally-generated backgrounds as location
settings for unfolding dramas, but - for these animated characters - there
remains the viewing problem of the ‘uncanny valley’.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mQMDVTr-XX8/YMdTn8Qo_KI/AAAAAAAAF5g/4klywAe3rCA7ZnEhQ-REQtZ5kD8IMd0hgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Final%2BFantasy02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mQMDVTr-XX8/YMdTn8Qo_KI/AAAAAAAAF5g/4klywAe3rCA7ZnEhQ-REQtZ5kD8IMd0hgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Final%2BFantasy02.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Somewhat perversely, the harder that such 3D anime
strives to produce any believable human figures and faces, the more that - even
unskilled - viewers might unconsciously <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘reject’ the delicate balancing act of
creativity and software which blatantly attempts to accurately imitate life.
When such presentations approach perfection, their tinniest flaws simply loom
ever larger than life itself. Discernable ‘imperfections’ in this illusion of
life are not to be confused with commonplace human faults. They are, instead,
entirely the flaws of something inhuman, and their manufactured state is always
readily apparent no matter what the context, so any illusion of life here
remains only partial and viewers are likely to instinctively disengage from the
drama.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N3yuVwX9ILQ/YMdTxPb-KUI/AAAAAAAAF5k/5bD4Sgdp4vcQo9qx6xNkPfGWxgq5PBHIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Final%2BFantasy03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N3yuVwX9ILQ/YMdTxPb-KUI/AAAAAAAAF5k/5bD4Sgdp4vcQo9qx6xNkPfGWxgq5PBHIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Final%2BFantasy03.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">As ever with such genre productions, the biggest single
flaw in the filmic narrative is not the presence of hackneyed dialogue or lack
of believability for some fantastic aspects, but the movements and placement of
virtual cameras. Simply put, there is just far too much ultra-fast cutting from
one angle to another, and jittery whizzing about in midair, or swirling around
in circles (that on a real film set would expose the ‘fourth wall’), and this
amounts to a rather childish misuse of the possibilities available for such animation.
Virtual cameras unwittingly compromise the - sometimes passable - test of basic
physics within portraits of imaginary worlds.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9dg68IwWSH4/YMdT5OTcX0I/AAAAAAAAF5s/rHmx2-Oyxs40YmmU2dzXgkrVL-4NW_ZOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Final%2BFantasy04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9dg68IwWSH4/YMdT5OTcX0I/AAAAAAAAF5s/rHmx2-Oyxs40YmmU2dzXgkrVL-4NW_ZOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Final%2BFantasy04.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">It does not help matters that the main plot
is wholly incomprehensible. Viewer might struggle to make sense of mystic nonsense
crashing into explorations of otherworldly SF themes, such as the ‘geo-stigma’
disease that’s somehow being passed onto humans by the ailing planet. Visually,
if not quite thematically, the influence of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Matrix</i> films is evident in fighting scenes, where both the sword-play
heroes (how do the spindly-limbed youngsters wield unfeasibly over-sized weapons?)
and unarmed combatants lurch across the screen with gravity-defying leaps over
tall buildings, and rather wretchedly silly notions of boot-strap help-mates
who each hurl the hero upwards, like throwing a relay-race baton flung up the
side of a skyscraper.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PqQ7tNkyxTc/YMdUDd-dAXI/AAAAAAAAF50/ksqcGtRMkg8lNp7nLhy4PRGV6HRda4vFACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Final%2BFantasy05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PqQ7tNkyxTc/YMdUDd-dAXI/AAAAAAAAF50/ksqcGtRMkg8lNp7nLhy4PRGV6HRda4vFACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Final%2BFantasy05.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Nevertheless, this newly revised 4K edition is the director’s
cut of the 2005 animated movie (100 minutes, cert. PG), and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete</b>
is hugely enjoyable, if you can overlook the amusingly ridiculous character names,
like Cloud and Rude, and your appreciation of genre action cinema is not
hindered by much intolerance for the confusing absurdities of variously convoluted
and lengthy 3D-cartoon sequences. The planet’s mythic Life-stream infecting
humans with geo-stigma disease as the central problem is a worthy ecological
metaphor (a witty riff on the Gaia hypothesis) and it means the plot seems less vital
to anime movies like this. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">FF7:ACC</i> is
best viewed as a collection of action sequences and visual poetry - like visionary
vignettes of digital art - on SF themes of survival. Its fantastical artistic qualities and
stunning exercises in stylish photo-real animation are of much greater
importance than story-telling and genre-narrative concerns. Most effective as an
expression of artistry inspired by the possibilities and impressions from
game-play in an extraordinary fairy-tale franchise, this is basically an
atypical sci-fi movie. Although it delivers frequently astonishing images of post-industrial
city-scape and giant monster-fighting in a dystopian world, it hardly matters
that many scenes defy the natural physics of motion and gravity, because it's the hyper-kinetics
of super-hero traditions that are most clearly being respected here, not any conventional reality.</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3BgN48MVH1k/YMdUgjcSGZI/AAAAAAAAF6A/XlxF78x0CPMLrLq3Ps5FhyxmQ3Jys-ZuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Final%2BFantasy06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3BgN48MVH1k/YMdUgjcSGZI/AAAAAAAAF6A/XlxF78x0CPMLrLq3Ps5FhyxmQ3Jys-ZuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Final%2BFantasy06.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Magically fabulous, this movie boasts PRA (photo-real
animation) of superior quality than 3D-styled ‘Hypermarionation’ for Gerry
Anderson’s TV series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">New Captain Scarlet</i>
(2005). Despite its complete lack of actors on-screen, there’s more genuinely
imaginative artistry here than can be found in Disney’s techno-fetishistic <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TRON: Legacy </i>(2010), although that was
more about quest gamers and explanatory narrative than this. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">FF7:ACC</i> was followed by Takeshi Nozue’s
equally impressive <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Kingsglaive: Final
Fantasy XV</i> (2016).</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NzOZ_bZdV2A/YMdUpKF9irI/AAAAAAAAF6E/xh-H6ziOahMkvGGeK5NVAbcHax0W0fR8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Final%2BFantasy07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="291" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NzOZ_bZdV2A/YMdUpKF9irI/AAAAAAAAF6E/xh-H6ziOahMkvGGeK5NVAbcHax0W0fR8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Final%2BFantasy07.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-6144970045006765742021-06-13T08:03:00.002+01:002021-06-20T13:33:31.577+01:00Parallel<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jMMmePUQKDU/YMWr8hHBnOI/AAAAAAAAF4Y/MWDXw2DE7YItLQGIvGH-l7uTsMwvlNG-QCLcBGAsYHQ/s650/Parallel1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="650" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jMMmePUQKDU/YMWr8hHBnOI/AAAAAAAAF4Y/MWDXw2DE7YItLQGIvGH-l7uTsMwvlNG-QCLcBGAsYHQ/w278-h400/Parallel1.jpg" width="278" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Aml Ameen, Martin
Wallstrom, and Georgia King</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Isaac Ezban</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">100 minutes (15) 2018<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">101 Films DVD <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>7/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Steven Hampton</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Reminiscent of Shane Carruth’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Primer</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (2004), this Canadian thriller has young techies discover a secret
room with a kind of magic mirror that’s a dimensional portal to a multi-verse
of possibilities and career opportunities. The kids develop their unfair
advantage by exploiting differing clock-speeds in some mirror-world timelines. From
stolen inventions to copied artwork, creative industries are a potential
goldmine, but is theft from alternate worlds just a victimless crime? The
childish indulgence of blowing up $1 million sounds like fun, until creepy
doppelganger antics result in sudden death.</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MbscpenEWik/YMWsNqZL8EI/AAAAAAAAF4g/mXAL1q2dNNkRCj562nNtWJe1TDtY537VwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Parallel2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MbscpenEWik/YMWsNqZL8EI/AAAAAAAAF4g/mXAL1q2dNNkRCj562nNtWJe1TDtY537VwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Parallel2.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /> </span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rvcq-QZbtk4/YMWsZFagSYI/AAAAAAAAF4o/2WBTLh1EwrI3MsRZYcxyQFKdBfDLWCxlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Parallel3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="310" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rvcq-QZbtk4/YMWsZFagSYI/AAAAAAAAF4o/2WBTLh1EwrI3MsRZYcxyQFKdBfDLWCxlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Parallel3.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Like a next-gen version of TV show <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sliders</i> (1995 - 2000), Mexican director <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Isaac Ezban’s <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Parallel</b> is perhaps the </span>best wonderfully witty sci-fi movie
since <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Looper</i> (2012). It brings out
dark paranoia in the protagonists that ramps higher with every new level of deception
folded sideways into their original reality. Somewhat unavoidably,
determination soon becomes obsession when emerging characters develop
complicated ambitions into money-spinning solutions to problems and needs that
didn’t exist before. It cleverly fulfils a precept of all the best SF about
extrapolation of any fantastic idea to its logical conclusion. Intelligent
sci-fi does not have to be a confusingly intellectual puzzle. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Parallel</i> is instantly engaging, like a
heist-movie with a moral dilemma, and it succeeds at being hugely entertaining
without ever losing its appeal to fans of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Twilight
Zone</i>-style mysteries. </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I-P7bmF_HxE/YMWsik9c1FI/AAAAAAAAF40/02g0rw4JdGshYtD8RXyw7yCt7Xo64KYpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Parallel4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-I-P7bmF_HxE/YMWsik9c1FI/AAAAAAAAF40/02g0rw4JdGshYtD8RXyw7yCt7Xo64KYpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Parallel4.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YMcQBfxBPTo/YMWsrfKoLhI/AAAAAAAAF48/pR7F7ys3TgYX1HX8YG1aHxHYiSX8IU9UwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Parallel5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="209" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YMcQBfxBPTo/YMWsrfKoLhI/AAAAAAAAF48/pR7F7ys3TgYX1HX8YG1aHxHYiSX8IU9UwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Parallel5.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">“I know that sounds crazy, but you have to believe me.” Oh
yes - it’s just not possible to avoid such dialogue in a movie that makes
unreasonable demands on the viewer’s sense of ironic humour. Made in 2018, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Parallel</i> might have been overlooked for
an international release until now because it lacks any Hollywood star names,
although Kathleen Quinlan appears briefly, in a prologue sequence. It could be
this year’s re-watchable <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2020/12/tenet.html" target="_blank">Tenet</a></i> on DVD. Look out
for the strange mirror’s final and weirdly fatal tilt. It’s gruesomely slippery when wet. </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-91d7Z4BZhSo/YMWs09-XwEI/AAAAAAAAF5E/MHjEmUz2Hok0ZyE-lUaRmwm8wi--DSVGACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Parallel6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-91d7Z4BZhSo/YMWs09-XwEI/AAAAAAAAF5E/MHjEmUz2Hok0ZyE-lUaRmwm8wi--DSVGACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Parallel6.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-5404012105533206872021-05-24T06:42:00.009+01:002021-05-27T19:39:56.662+01:00 Zack Snyder’s Justice League<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KZTCMCXTsoo/YKs3CT0A_cI/AAAAAAAAF3Y/j9FT2_7sQmkVKXgDMUuU5niEysUN_zREQCLcBGAsYHQ/s573/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="573" data-original-width="450" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KZTCMCXTsoo/YKs3CT0A_cI/AAAAAAAAF3Y/j9FT2_7sQmkVKXgDMUuU5niEysUN_zREQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague1.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, and Gal Gadot</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Zack Snyder</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">242 minutes (15) 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Warner Bros. 4K Ultra HD</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>10/10</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Christopher Geary </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Contrary
to a well-known and often-quoted designer aesthetic, less is not more. More is
actually often much better (unless you’re a weight-watcher on a crash-diet). Quality
not quantity, is another highly relevant saying that might help form a
thoughtful judgement of something’s value, but twice as much is assuredly going
against a minimalist creative ethos. There is no escaping from a
confrontational approach to any comparison between this version, the definitive
edition of Snyder’s unfinished or abandoned picture, and the earlier movie
‘completed’ (supposedly) by Joss Whedon as contracted writer-director for hire.
Whedon’s mercenary work on the essentially disappointing two-hour film </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Justice League</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (2017) could now be seen
as Hollywood’s longest-ever trailer, a rather simplistic prelude for this magnificent
new classic of superheroic movies. The most clear precedent for this kind of re-building
a previously finished and released movie is (also from Warner Bros), </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">
(2006). Credited to Donner’s replacement, Richard Lester, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Superman II</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> was released in 1980, and its original director’s cut remained
a fandom daydream, until the makers of Bryan Singer’s tribute movie </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Superman Returns</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> found unused footage by
Donner in the studio archives. Well, at least, for </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Justice League</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, we didn’t have to wait so long this time.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MuVtFx-XvtY/YKs38SYukHI/AAAAAAAAF3g/HADDNd0DVssaU95cZ0qb2TRqzwjDUFmCACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="259" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MuVtFx-XvtY/YKs38SYukHI/AAAAAAAAF3g/HADDNd0DVssaU95cZ0qb2TRqzwjDUFmCACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague2.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Zack Snyder’s Justice
League</b> picks up plot-threads from the climactic sequence of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice</i> (2016), when the dying Superman’s
yell echoes round the globe. Much more than another modestly enhanced, or just expanded
edition (as seen in versions of Singer’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">X-Men</i>
movies), this four-hour director’s cut unfolds into an expansive epic that
almost outgrows the whole superheroes genre, never mind the DC films’ canon.
Wrapped in the media’s cultural peak of science fiction, this supreme example
of modern American mythology fields an unholy Unity of three mothers (in
magical boxes), bringing apocalypse from the stars. Only the second coming of a
space messiah, as crisis prompts resurrection, renews 21st century hope for the
Age of Heroes. The big story-arc that Marvel accomplished for the Avengers in five adventures
(including <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Captain America: Civil War</i>),
DC has now done with the Justice League in just two movies.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XpE9yMHMrVM/YKs4HY2OOkI/AAAAAAAAF3k/UFQJkZpJv6sYPYwB0mZ3icONtXgVdXA7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XpE9yMHMrVM/YKs4HY2OOkI/AAAAAAAAF3k/UFQJkZpJv6sYPYwB0mZ3icONtXgVdXA7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague3.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">This ‘Snyder cut’ includes clever segues, linking
different scenes, as melancholy becomes a thing of universal experience, before
a progressive resurgence of trust spins a society’s grief into a state where six
meta-human outsiders might become civilisation’s defenders. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ZSJL</i> delivers on the promise of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Man Of Steel</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">BVS</i> by giving fans a greatly improved, captivating drama with
vastly sophisticated sci-fi action chaptered for up-market appeal. More than
another great super-team origin, the movie ushers genre showmanship into an
emotionally resonant exercise of group dynamics and story-telling excellence.
It’s broadly independent of pop-cult references, and other typically mediocre
concerns, like Whedon’s colourful lighting set-ups, blatantly fetishistic
sexism, and hyper-masculine fights, lacking a genuine style or poetic grace.
Whedonisms of light-hearted and frivolous wit, dialogues often based on quips, and
in-jokes, are weeded out, happily replaced with fresh lines that fully respect all
characterisations with an in-depth veracity, instead of casually poking fun at DC’s
premier line-up of thoroughly modernised heroes. It must be noted, though, that
butler Alfred’s (entirely welcome) sarcasm, always at the expense of Bruce
Wayne’s ego, is assuredly more prevalent, and effectively deflating, here.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b-s-jWMzEoc/YKs4rEwkaMI/AAAAAAAAF3w/LPY6kdvpcl0hVXPhF5-wyeLPohFHvkq5ACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="271" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b-s-jWMzEoc/YKs4rEwkaMI/AAAAAAAAF3w/LPY6kdvpcl0hVXPhF5-wyeLPohFHvkq5ACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague4.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Although lots of scenes remain the same, significant
editing, during the movie’s renewed post-production phase, means that even
already familiar elements are freshly presented with gritty vigour and
surprisingly richer ambition. The primary villain Steppenwolf is very much a
case in point. Previously, the role relied on an actor’s distinctive voice to provide
the obvious animations with a suitably life-like presence, but here this alien character’s
portrayal depends far more on superior visual effects, including a constantly twitching
‘active’-armour suit. Many pivotal sequences are revised from Whedon’s
frequently-contrived effort, and this work eliminates any superficial and
irrational twists, to embrace convincing subtlety in characterisations, with responses
to tragedy that embody objectives more positive than any form of vengeance.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1zt43PHqY6w/YKs5ruxIqoI/AAAAAAAAF34/CUdWjsLvSiIf_XEvb0uAjls2jyPXu8PYACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1zt43PHqY6w/YKs5ruxIqoI/AAAAAAAAF34/CUdWjsLvSiIf_XEvb0uAjls2jyPXu8PYACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague5.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Now suitably frightening, death-cult terrorists in the
Old Bailey are a grim foreshadowing of alien menace. Scenes that looked quite random
choices in the earlier ‘Josstice League’ are now fully matured, and alive with a
purpose, seemingly logical, or perhaps inevitable considering all the forces at
work, connecting events, agendas, or often fateful decisions. </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
meeting of Barry Allen (alias, the Flash), and Iris West, during a car crash in
a slow-motion sequence is elevated for wonderful visual poetry here by romantic
ballad </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Song To The Siren</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">, a well-chosen
cover-version by British singer Rose Betts. If it’s remembered in years to
come, for nothing else, </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">ZSJL</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> deserves
critical attention for breathing astonishing new artistry into the cinematic
cliché of love at first sight. A brief, yet sublime, encounter it’s one of
those very rare but iconic combinations of images and music with spellbinding affect
- a bewitching 'pop-video' experience that’s almost certain to link this movie to
that song, forever.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cCpyT4GUby8/YKs5-GNYK0I/AAAAAAAAF4A/iAlvmssdJUk5G73YuQ2u6CKvJMg-DwOQwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="229" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cCpyT4GUby8/YKs5-GNYK0I/AAAAAAAAF4A/iAlvmssdJUk5G73YuQ2u6CKvJMg-DwOQwCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague6.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Spectacular
effects and exceptional super-stunts accumulate into dazzling thrills. A vastly
improved colour palette is only one of the upgrades deployed here with careful
reverence for world-building elements and the back-story developments of varied
characters. Of course, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ZSJL</i> also
benefits from the hindsight of knowing what worked, flawlessly, or better than usual, in <i>A<span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">vengers</span> </i>movies, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Infinity War</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Endgame</i>, and so wounds are bloody here, and decapitation is a final
solution. Despite his robotic appearance, the troubled hero Cyborg,
short-changed as a newly-minted character by the 2017 version, is revealed as being
far closer in aptitude or philosophy to Marvel’s android the Vision, so he’s not DC’s answer to hip genius Iron Man.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1LTuq0DFsKY/YKs6LcDNjVI/AAAAAAAAF4E/Wu9h49386kAMktoGYtTon5zs4rBIAKjxgCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1LTuq0DFsKY/YKs6LcDNjVI/AAAAAAAAF4E/Wu9h49386kAMktoGYtTon5zs4rBIAKjxgCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague7.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">In several
important moments, Darkseid appears as a monstrous being rather ghastly in
aspect, and ultimately more menacing than overly-talkative Thanos in Avengers
movies. </span></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Instead of being
over too quickly, now the united League’s final battle is an extraordinary feat
of cosmic justice. Its impact on the DC universe feels profound and looks
awesome. The worthwhile multi-part epilogue offers plenty of scope for another
sequel, although at time of writing, it seems unlikely. Perhaps if this movie
proves hugely successful enough, the producers will think again. Like a 'Change Machine' in human form, Zack Snyder acquits his grandiose ambitions with tremendous
ability. This UHD edition spans two discs with a four-chapter block (totalling 142
minutes), and two closing chapters on a second disc (adding 100 minutes). Disc one
includes featurette extra: </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Road To
Justice League</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (24 minutes).</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rj2LHJYePo4/YKs6WwBoImI/AAAAAAAAF4M/GHZAqWiSBIgp_5CG8BGubIwW_VY-CE-ywCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rj2LHJYePo4/YKs6WwBoImI/AAAAAAAAF4M/GHZAqWiSBIgp_5CG8BGubIwW_VY-CE-ywCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/Zack%2BSnyder%2BJustice%2BLeague9.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-11497772352959495292021-05-10T11:04:00.000+01:002021-05-10T11:04:46.559+01:00A Glitch In The Matrix<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HC-x2DhVTIE/YJkAG8OPUpI/AAAAAAAAF1E/-EWYOMtXJPgFWDqfqHXXXKx0ef3cMBKIwCLcBGAsYHQ/s560/GlitchM1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HC-x2DhVTIE/YJkAG8OPUpI/AAAAAAAAF1E/-EWYOMtXJPgFWDqfqHXXXKx0ef3cMBKIwCLcBGAsYHQ/w321-h400/GlitchM1.jpg" width="321" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: Rodney Ascher </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">108 minutes (15) 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dogwoof Blu-ray<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>6/10</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review by Steven Hampton</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">One of the greatest philosophical questions that emerged
from science fiction’s concerns and considerations about Virtual Reality is,
basically: if nothing’s physically real in cyber-space, must we then simply
abandon all morality? Where’s the harm in ‘torture’, slavery, and/ or ‘murder’
by termination if there’s no actual victim affected by apparent ‘crimes’? As if
this crucial genre riddle wasn’t disturbing enough what if ‘nothing’ we know is
‘real’?</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Is our Earthly reality just a simulation running on cosmic
machinery of a super-advanced computer system? Kardashev’s theory of mega-civilisation types might suggest how it all could work. If there’s no practical
difference between type IV (universe-spanning) and/ or type V (Ω) multi-verse
scale civilisations, and our various notions of god, then (probably?) we cannot
know for certain, anyway. This brain-smasher wraps itself in enigma and
mystery. </span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bqs9Wv1MKmk/YJkBJHqo6XI/AAAAAAAAF1c/J6ZPperLjYIDegfGHUnWOhuAmgwzsGZ_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/GlitchM2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bqs9Wv1MKmk/YJkBJHqo6XI/AAAAAAAAF1c/J6ZPperLjYIDegfGHUnWOhuAmgwzsGZ_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/GlitchM2.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Seen here in archive clips, author Philip K. Dick’s
popularisation of genre theories about a potential multi-verse of parallel
worlds form a cornerstone of argument that’s rarely been questioned, although
one seemingly-baffled man’s emergence from a (reportedly health-related)
personal crisis with claims of cosmological visions now looks, in a cynical
century decades later, like a headline-grabbing publicity-stunt. Neurotic
reactions to intense déjà vu, and fervently grandiose delusions of devout
faith, in organised or cult religions, ropes in other extreme possibilities,
yet some of the commentators interviewed for this movie’s array of viewpoints
appear to confuse possibility with probability.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Although several <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Twilight
Zone</i> (1959-64 ’85-89/ 2002-3/ ’19-20) motifs are hardly even judged as relevant
here, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Wizard Of Oz</i> (1939) is cited by
a clip, while versions of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Alice In
Wonderland</i> and Lewis’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Narnia</i>
books should have got a mention just for adding their own similarly hallucinatory
contrivances, and blending blatant fantasy themes into genre lore. Reading such
fairy tales while growing up is still a mind-expanding route to appreciations
of adults’ genre literature, if not always lessons in worthy moralities and
ethical thinking. A notable jumping-on point for V.R. in SF was Daniel Galouye’s
1963 novel <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Simulacron-3</i>, adapted for
German TV as Fassbinder’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">World On A Wire</i>
(1977), and then filmed as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Thirteenth
Floor</i> (1999) by Josef Rusnak. The original <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Star Trek</i> episode <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Cage</i>
(1965) can nowadays be easily re-interpreted as a prison in dream-space, while
McGoohan’s cult TV series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Prisoner</i>
(1967) - especially its ‘western’ styled episode <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Living In Harmony</i>, offered a proto-VR, that led SF development in
Crichton’s theme-park <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Westworld</i> (1973), and
Sasdy’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Welcome To Blood City</i> (1977).
</span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E_cU01bNz1M/YJkBWtjNi_I/AAAAAAAAF1g/cSoeLdJ4xSEdcbCfOj83oPNY0Q5N5Va8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/GlitchM3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E_cU01bNz1M/YJkBWtjNi_I/AAAAAAAAF1g/cSoeLdJ4xSEdcbCfOj83oPNY0Q5N5Va8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/GlitchM3.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: verdana;">While Disney’s visual futurism in </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">TRON</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1982) opened the hidden curtains of cyberspace, Cronenberg’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Videodrome</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1982), and his later </span><i style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2018/05/existenz.html" target="_blank">eXistenZ</a></i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1999), exposed the new-fleshy
layers of trickery. Trumbull’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Brainstorm</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">
(1983) demoed recordings of ecstasy and death, Verhoeven’s surreal spy-fi </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Total Recall</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1990) plugged us into a pseudo-holiday
machine. Later, forming a tidal-wave of duplicity or derangement, Bigelow’s
millennial actioner </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Strange Days</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">
(1995), Leonard’s unboxed </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Virtuosity</i><span style="font-family: verdana;">
(1995), and Proyas’ nightmare-movie </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Dark
City</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1998), explored increasingly dystopian trends, while Carpenter’s witty
comedy </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">They Live</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1998), expanded
from Ray Nelson’s story </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Eight O’Clock In
The Morning</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1963, matching Galouye’s book - and completing a 'cyclical' timeline).
Media fun, at the expense of ideas, took centre-stage for Weir’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">The Truman Show</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (1998), before the Wachowskis’
</span><i style="font-family: verdana;">The Matrix</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> trilogy (1999-2003) re-articulated
most of the SF texts and media that we’d got, so far, into an endlessly-debatable idealistic
thriller of humanity unknowingly enslaved by A.I.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KldSv6JFpFU/YJkB9B-h-YI/AAAAAAAAF10/Gl6hWab4rEYvaB1vFhKl0EaxwqooMuBiQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/GlitchM5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KldSv6JFpFU/YJkB9B-h-YI/AAAAAAAAF10/Gl6hWab4rEYvaB1vFhKl0EaxwqooMuBiQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/GlitchM5.jpg" /></a></div><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When 21st century technology rarely does what it’s
actually made to do (and never mind whatever users wish it could do), it’s
simply no wonder that a century of SF cinema, plus a lifetime of genre TV
shows, and the complexities of game-player media now undermine human (already
limited) perceptions of reality. Sometimes when the unreliability of memory, anti-social
boredom (factor in the side-effects of drink and drugs), results in a conspiracy
theory of global scale (faked missions to the Moon, climate-change denial?), can
so easily prompt depressive paranoia, and nihilistic responses, with down-spiral
thinking only good for circling the Libertarian drains of social order. (See
how easy it is to slip into a ranting mode?) </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">The fascinating subgenre continued in very different ways like
Spielberg’s </span><i style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://videovista-uk.blogspot.com/2018/08/ready-player-one.html" target="_blank">Ready Player One</a></i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (2018), Finnegan’s horrific </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Vivarium</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (2019), and in TV remakes such
as </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Westworld</i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> (since 2016).</span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FOQkZNcbXoY/YJkBh6dp2QI/AAAAAAAAF1o/ULCswZRwEiI7P2OUrXpRDCZzcldrpsWLACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/GlitchM4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="273" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FOQkZNcbXoY/YJkBh6dp2QI/AAAAAAAAF1o/ULCswZRwEiI7P2OUrXpRDCZzcldrpsWLACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/GlitchM4.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>A Glitch In The
Matrix</b> fields various escapist fantasies of isolated obsessive nerds, and
social-maverick outsiders’ undiagnosed mental problems, as if assorted video-phoned-in
contributions, about whimsical “OMG-U-guys” maybes, by sundry weirdoes, should
really count for... well, something. Undeniably, there’s an entrancing
alienation theme set free to run wild here, but as too many discordant or
self-regarding, or masked for anonymity, voices pile-on with repetitions of
rants as story-telling, a lot of this flashy documentary’s raving-mad narrative
coherence evaporates, quite ironically. Anecdotes are presented as evidence
with no scientific rationale, and so tall tales and ripping yarns lack any
shreds of credibility.</span><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Peculiarities accumulate, alongside theoretical musings
that date back to Plato, instead of studying the undoubted impacts on our consciousness
of all these SF ideas from books or media (there are too many exemplars to list
here), quite likely to have surprised readers, and stunned watchers, with
phildickian concepts they’d never imagined. As previously, in A<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">scher’s
feature-length debut <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Room 237</i> (2012),
a critical assessment of Kubrick’s iconic horror <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Shining</i> (1980), the director’s approach is wholly inconsistent
with any typical non-fiction. Digressions and diversions are strewn throughout,
and so fairly logical trains of thought often derail into an unfortunate
incomprehensibility. Still, this crazy ride to an entirely unreachable
destination is worth its sensory-ticket for some remarkably abstract scenery.</span></span></p><p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1Y93RHhTm2c/YJkAcfKHAWI/AAAAAAAAF1M/PNJMOO3fey4psJ_2agAv4x_LQ0TfRrqQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/GlitchM9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="369" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1Y93RHhTm2c/YJkAcfKHAWI/AAAAAAAAF1M/PNJMOO3fey4psJ_2agAv4x_LQ0TfRrqQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/GlitchM9.jpg" /></a></span></div><p></p></div>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609451079270299185.post-41047560095202694702021-05-07T11:54:00.002+01:002021-05-07T11:54:52.604+01:00Daughter Of The Wolf<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S3RXIDPufo8/YJUbBs7TD-I/AAAAAAAAF0Q/3aHr3dev8BwdAbV5FdQxhgpoyXCZ1EC7QCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Daughter%2BOf%2BThe%2BWolf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="301" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S3RXIDPufo8/YJUbBs7TD-I/AAAAAAAAF0Q/3aHr3dev8BwdAbV5FdQxhgpoyXCZ1EC7QCLcBGAsYHQ/w241-h400/Daughter%2BOf%2BThe%2BWolf.jpg" width="241" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Cast: Gina Carano, Brendan Fehr, and Richard
Dreyfuss</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Director: David Hackl</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">84 minutes (15) 2019</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Dazzler DVD<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Rating: <b>6/10</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Review by Donald Morefield </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Something
like “I’ve come for my boy” has become a clichéd line from revenge-westerns,
but for this crime thriller of a kidnapping plot, its family-rescue drama turns
into a brutal manhunt, as <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Daughter Of
The Wolf</b> concerns several gritty confrontations, between the mother and the
kidnappers of her son, where basic humanity is eclipsed by animal rages. Vigilante
heroine Clair (Gina Carano) meets the balaclava henchmen, to deliver a ransom
payment, but this handover of cash is jinxed by their double-cross, so a car chase
and an inevitable road crash are the result of a botched solution to the
crisis. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rErnmKiObqM/YJUbTZ9gUlI/AAAAAAAAF0Y/7LVCX-9o1eM13MjRT-V3OUT4iUmCN5P4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/daughterW2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rErnmKiObqM/YJUbTZ9gUlI/AAAAAAAAF0Y/7LVCX-9o1eM13MjRT-V3OUT4iUmCN5P4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/daughterW2.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5wX7CAn12NI/YJUbTYa-tjI/AAAAAAAAF0c/TGmOGGkIh-gd74V5GxpmX1TN-DK9vd2jQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/daughterW3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5wX7CAn12NI/YJUbTYa-tjI/AAAAAAAAF0c/TGmOGGkIh-gd74V5GxpmX1TN-DK9vd2jQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/daughterW3.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Stroppy
teen son Charlie is rather more than simply a helpless pawn moving through this
sinister game of one-upmanship. Not just another skinny blonde action star, former
MMA champion Gina ‘Crush’ Carano successfully beats up bad-guys more
convincingly than any of today’s athletes turned actresses. Her fighting
opponents here include thug turned anti-hero Larsen (Brendan Fehr), and the rather more credibly dangerous Hobbs (Sydelle Noel). Primary antagonist Father (Hollywood
superstar Richard Dreyfuss) delivers his brimstone rants with aplomb. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qtJoOFHo2qI/YJUbj_cvWQI/AAAAAAAAF0k/d2S_-SDfZhQLhvLFlLTCXCbSAdbYsWkJACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/daughterW4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qtJoOFHo2qI/YJUbj_cvWQI/AAAAAAAAF0k/d2S_-SDfZhQLhvLFlLTCXCbSAdbYsWkJACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/daughterW4.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3MFR7sKxP78/YJUbkHFO7JI/AAAAAAAAF0o/dR2NaUIZSyAq_ijQ9SvSp6iTCAHsEbbaACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/daughterW5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="229" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3MFR7sKxP78/YJUbkHFO7JI/AAAAAAAAF0o/dR2NaUIZSyAq_ijQ9SvSp6iTCAHsEbbaACLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/daughterW5.jpg" /></a></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Film-maker
David Hackl is clearly no stranger to horror stories about humans or animals,
since he made sequel <i>Saw V</i> (2008), in
that popular genre franchise, and <i>Into
The Grizzly Maze</i> (2015). This often spectacular movie skilfully conjures a malevolent
atmosphere for location work on chilly mountainside terrain, especially in
grisly scenes of typically poetic justice. These are cleverly structured to
involve a pack of wolves in Clair’s hunting scenes and so frequent blood-in-the-snow
images on widescreen landscapes punctuate this grim fairy-tale, shot with
startling colour and motion, despite its general stillness in the frozen
forests.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1StbajGqda0/YJUb1dST8YI/AAAAAAAAF00/pAGtYO8hIoQgZCICaDQvUCmwvNJBIlwlQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/daughterW6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1StbajGqda0/YJUb1dST8YI/AAAAAAAAF00/pAGtYO8hIoQgZCICaDQvUCmwvNJBIlwlQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/daughterW6.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Although this picture never matches the dramatic intensities of Taylor
Sheridan’s <i>Wind River</i> (2017), there
are obviously lower-budget similarities here - as bitter and twisted, or bruised and
battered, people explore human darkness in a world that’s mostly whiteness.</span></p>Tony Leehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02781999386013672559noreply@blogger.com