Weekly Review 59: AMER, STRANGERS, SNATCHERS, BERBERIAN, CHILD'S

October 19, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Amer, Berberian Sound Studio, Child's Play, Horror, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Strangers, Weekly Review

Last week saw the release of the 13 Most Disturbing Horror Movies of the Last 13 Years (to thunderous applause) but I still had some fuel left in the tank to charge through a few more horror movies in preparation for Hallow’s Eve. In fact, the season has had a particularly strong sway with me this year, as I’ve now sought out a haunted house (Fright Fest in Federal Way), a haunted Seattle tour (Pioneer Square) and am soon to embark on an 18+ horror extravaganza (Real Fear) that will require me to sign and fingerprint a “don’t sue us” waver. Bring it on.

At home, I popped on one of my favorite Halloween flicks, Drag Me To Hell, but since I was mostly cooking eggs and washing dishes while I watched, I didn’t think it got the attention it deserved to be included for closer dissection amongst this week’s batch. I will however admit to loving that film wholeheartedly. In theaters, I caught St. Vincent, White Bird in a Blizzard, Dear White People and the utterly astounding , the last of which I would urge you to see as soon as it comes to a theater near you. But enough about me, let’s get to these Weekly Reviews.

AMER (2009)

A French experimental drama by way of the horror genre dedicated to its own experimentalism, Amer is an slip’n’slide of colors and askew camera angles. Part acid trip, part student film, there isn’t much to say about Amer‘s standstill plot, but in a movie such as this, plot isn’t really even a consideration. Admirably filmed and often gorgeously photographed, Amer is a film I can see some people some finding worth in but was not won over by the over-the-top existentialism of co-directors and writers Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani‘s wandering tendencies. The music is admittedly awesome, it just so happens that everything else is inidellyic. (C-)

THE STRANGERS (2007)

Liv Tyler stars in this taut little home invasion horror, a film that knows how to use sounds and shadows to its each and every advantage. There isn’t too much motion within The Strangers – it mostly unfolds within an isolated wooden cabin in the middle of, you guessed it, nowhere – but sets itself up with some emotional stakes that are never made light of nor ever truly fleshed out. For that fact alone, I had a lot of respect for the restraint and nuance of Bryan Bertino‘s storytelling. His is a movie happy to leave us hanging, waiting for an auditory bang or the appearance of a nefarious invader but not depending upon it. Atmospheric and deliberate spooky, The Strangers is a strong example of frugal horror done right. (B)

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978)

A remake of Don Siegel‘s 1956 sci-fi, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a smartly told story of alien invasion. Being a child of the 90’s, my fourth grade year involved learning the cold hard facts about aliens through “Animorphs.” That’s right, I suckled on the nourishing, junky teat of K.A. Applegate. So yeah, I am well versed in the fine art of yerking. Because that’s basically what’s going on here. Except with slugs. Body Snatchers is one of the films that I’ve put off for a long time, expecting something amazing and earth-shattering. And though I rather enjoyed the film, it wasn’t quite the astonishing masterwork I had hoped for. Nonetheless, it’s a pulpy, politically charged (the sheer amount of Red panic is almost excruciating) tale of the terrors of conformity. (B)

BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO (2012)

A lonely foley worker (Tobey Jones) out of his element gets mixed up with an auteur’s quest to make a truly horrifying film. Along the way, slicing up cabbages, yanking on turnips and drowning melons to stimulate stabbings, scalpings and suffocations begins to wear on his uneasy English psyche. The intriguing premise sees Jones wrestle with some heavy and heady material and leaves us an audience as an indirect observer to the horror and violence that is affecting him so deeply. As the lines between reality and film begin to blur, Berberian Sound Studio takes a b-line to a trippy dimension that it never seems to ever make sense of nor get out of. The cold ending leaves us without much closure and unsure of exactly everything that had transpired in the first place. Compelling and worthy of a chance, though I’m not entirely convinced that everything really adds up in the end, Berberian Sound Studio certainly makes its mark by standing out from the rest of the crowd. (C+)

CHILD’S PLAY (1988)

Perhaps imaginative for its time, Child’s Play is a classic example of 80’s horror movies that just don’t really hold up all that well today. The plot is thin, as are the characters and Chucky is creepier asking for a hug than he is wielding a butcher’s knife. The humor beats also come across as a little saggy and dated, the scribe obviously not yet well versed in the fine art of horror-comedy. More seasonal background noise than anything worthy of actually watching, Child’s Play is, as its name implies, play. Had it a little more depth, a little less kid acting and a lot more imagination, it would have fared better in today’s extreme horror climate. (C)

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Weekly Review 58: WOLF, ARMY, CORPSES, EYES

October 12, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Army of Darkness, Eyes Wide Shut, House of 1000 Corpses, Weekly Review, Wolf Creek

If you just saw this short list of at home flicks, you may assume I’ve been taking it fairly easy this week when in reality, it’s been a full blown onslaught of horror here in my Queen Anne abode. In theaters, I caught screenings of Dracula Untold and Fury (review Wednesday) but in preparation for tomorrow’s diligently researched “13 Most Disturbing Horror Movies of the Last 13 Years,” I’ve been charging through some of the most villainous stuff ever set to screen. Considering you’ll hear much more about those tomorrow, any entries that made the cut are not included in this Weekly Review write up. So though four monstrous entries have been omitted, here are those that didn’t qualify or quite made the cut.

ARMY OF DARKNESS (1992)

First of all, let’s talk about how much I love Evil Dead II. In my mind, it’s the pinnacle of campy horror movie. It’s Sam Raimi’s oddball magnum opus. It’s perfect weird and wonderfully original. The first installment doesn’t work nearly as well for me, nor does this third one. Though there’s still a lot of the goofy stuff, like the legion of mini-Ashes, that worked so well for Evil Dead II, the medieval setting just doesn’t really work for me (especially in the somewhat anticlimactic finale) nor did Bruce Campbell‘s trumped up ego. It is responsible for some of the franchise’s best one-liners and it’s certainly a hell of a lot of fun but, nonetheless, it’s just not Raimi’s best. I know it’s a cinephile sin to not praise Army of Darkness to high heavens but, in my humblest of opinions, it just only works occasionally. Now we presumably must do battle. KNIVES OUT! (B-)

WOLF CREEK (2005)

A brutal take on backwoods shenanigans, the Australian Wolf Creek works as well as it does because of the rare narrative perspective it adopts. When the shit goes down – and it definitely goes down hard – we see the endeavor through the eyes of one solitary character with everything serving as a backdrop to the frantic clamber of a freed victim. Scrambling from one desolate set piece to another, Greg McLean uses the desolation of hodunk Australia take focus. Just sanguine-soaked enough to charm bloodbuffs and put off those not won over to the genre, Wolf Creek is one of the better installments to a sub-genre that’s all but gotten out of control. (B-)

HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES (2003)

Antagonist by design, Rob Zombie‘s debut shows a serious lack of restraint amidst a real penchant for this kind of twisted territory. Skinned bodies, rape shacks and just about a thousand corpses populate this demented shlock shock horror flick and, surprisingly enough, much of the fear Zombie gestates is palpable. His vision is strikingly unpleasant, his House of 1000 Corpses is truly a horror show to behold. True to his film’s namesake, there are a ludicrous amount of bodies, an insane amount of lecherous bloodlust and all kind of revolting freakshow displays. It’s a shame though that Zombie couldn’t divorce his overbearing music video aesthetic from his first film go. It would have fared much better without it. (C)

EYES WIDE SHUT (1999)

Stanley Kubrick submitted his cut of Eyes Wide Shut a mere six days before he passed away. Though not a perfect film, Kubrick’s swan song is symbolic of his absolute technical mastery and his characteristically ruthless command over his cast. Tom Cruise shines in front of Kubrick’s lens, strolling through New York City streets as unsettling as the English canals of Clockwork Orange, but it’s co-star Nicole Kidman who really steals the show. Her deeply affected performance is haunting in its intoxicating candor, her jealousy and rage make her as unpredictable as any feral cat and she eats up her scene like figgy pudding over the holidays. Though Eyes Wide Shut doesn’t quite exist in the same horrifying category as The Shining or Clockwork, it’s a preeminently eerie product that is as unsettling as it is masked in deeper nuance. (A-)

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Weekly Review 57: KILL, HOS2EL, SACRAMENT

October 2, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Hostel: Part 2, Kill List, Reviews, The Sacrament, Weekly Review 1 Comment

Three more horror movies at home this week were joined by screening of Gone Girl, Men, Women and Children and Annabelle. With a fair amount of work on my platter and a barrage of visitors, my at home viewing wasn’t what it’s been lately. Nonetheless, I present a short selection of great, good and bad. Let’s get down to some Weekly Review..

KILL LIST (2012)

Part crime thriller, part imploding family drama, all visceral horror, Kill List is an experience in unchecked fear. Perfectly paced and brilliantly directed, what begins as an ambiguous exercise in tension building unfolds into a bloody road trip before exploding into a full blown panic attack. Questions pile up and answers are few and far between but Kill List is a movie that lends itself to deconstruction and theoretical questioning. Is it a religious parable about a modern day angel of vengeance? A commentary on an impending cultural apocalypse? Is it the devil’s coming of age tale? Or is it just threateningly vague to intentionally get you all in a tizzy? With music that is surely the soundtrack of Hell, Kill List burns itself into your subconscious, threatening to strike at the darkest hour. (A-)

HOSTEL: PART 2 (2007)

Sadistic and artless, Hostel: Part 2 is an antagonistic sequel that adds nothing to Eli Roth‘s gorily groundbreaking first installment. Meant to satisfy BDSM perverts, this unnecessary second addition is a xenophobic venture through Eastern Europe; home place of the sexually depraved; a backpackers sadomasochistic nightmare. Character motivations are as thin as “I like to kill” or “I’m annoying, so kill me” and nothing adds up to a satisfying or slightly original conclusion. The obvious red herrings are more noxious than clever, especially with a to-be murderer who has a sudden change of heart before turning on a dime again. Like the deluded fantasy of a sick and twisted rapist, Hostel: Part 2 is the kind of movie that’s made purely to show a guy getting his dong cut off with a rusty pair of scissors. That is, it’s pure snuff. (D)

THE SACRAMENT (2013)

The Sacrament is Ti West‘s stab at revisionist history. He amends the 1970s to now, asking what if VICE had documented the downfall of Jonestown. This time round it’s called Eden’s Parish and Jones is lovingly referred to as “Father”. Their just over 100 population is only a fraction of Jonestowns 918 fatalities and yet I don’t know if I could have stomached another 800 bodies. As much in a particular wheelhouse as West’s two prior efforts, The Sacrament is the horror auteur’s take on found footage. Starring AJ Bowen and Joe Swanberg as a team of VICE documentarians who enter a guarded cult-like commune to bring their story to the world, The Sacrament takes you to the edge of darkness and will bring you to the edge of your seat. Add a haunting performance – down to the saggy jowls and nighttime sun glasses, Gene Jones (coin toss guy from No Country for Old Men) is Jim Jones. He speaks in seduction, his weapon is Christ. – and you have something that feels frighteningly like real life. Witnessing the downfall of Eden is haunting in its realism. It feels like we’re in Jonestown. And what a bummer that is. (B)

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Weekly Review 56: SESSION, IT, SANGRE, MANHUNTER, PONTYPOOL, SLACKER, BORGMAN

September 28, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Borgman, It, Manhunter, Pontypool, Santa Sangre, Session 9, Slacker, Weekly Review

Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve gotten through all of Survivor on Hulu or I just have had more time on my hands lately but once again, I have a huge slate of movies for this batch of Weekly Review. Horror flicks from four decades made an appearance; some of which were great, some exhaustively terrible. In theaters, I caught Kill the Messenger starring Jeremy Renner which will be posted new week. So with seven films on the docket, it’s time for the hebdomadal Weekly Review.

SESSION 9 (2001)

Inventive, eerie and well paced psychological horror outing has more in common with The Shining than it knows, Session 9 spooks. Gordon (Peter Mullan) leads an asbestos abatement crew who’ve taken on the massive job of cleaning up an enormous abandoned mental facility. In a matter of days, the crew shows signs of wear with each undergoing their own form of mental break to various degrees. With only a paltry budget at his disposal, director Brad Anderson (who would go on to make The Machinist) milks the natural spookiness of the set’s locale, the true-to-life Danvers State Mental Hospital in Massachusetts, making Session 9 an exercise in making the most of what you’ve got. Considered a cult film, this frightfest is likely to leave you jittery and actually satisfied with the reasonable conclusion it arrives at. (B+)

IT (1990)

I had no idea that It was a made for T.V. movie until it was too late and I had already rented it at my local video store. Lo and beyond, It sucked. Goreless, indescribably long (three hours and 15 brutal minutes) and populated by stretches of terrible, terrible!, Little House on the Praire score, It fails to ever cross the line into being actually scary or a distinctive take on Steven King‘s frightful tome. With adult actors who are amazingly worse than their child actor counterparts – Tim Curry is fine as Pennywise the Clown, but hardly memorable – and a villain who’s overexposed to the point of being entirely ineffectual, It has utterly no oomph. The dialogue is aggressively cut rate – the apparent product of a discount script from an amateur screenwriter – but it’s astounding how poorly the hackneyed lines are performed. Worst of all, the pitiable direction is a wash, with absolutely nothing visually interesting going on…ever. It is almost to the extent of being without one redeeming aspect. In essence, the ponytail/mole combo on actor Richard Thomas (As the World Turns, The Million Dollar Kid) is a pretty spot on representation of the movie as a whole. (F)

SANTA SANGRE (1989)

As experimental and organic as a Werner Herzog film, Alejandro Jodorowsky‘s Mexican-Italian experimental horror thriller Santa Sangre explores themes of mental illness, circus politics and familial chaos. Deemed too immature, Fenix, the young lad dubbed the “Boy Magician”, lives in a despotic circus. His father is a womanizing brute, his mother a jealous, wrathful woman. When their elephant bleeds out its snout until it dies, Fenix’s father carves a massive phoenix tattoo into his chest because he was caught crying. Because that’s what makes men men: chest phoenix tattoos. What follows enters Psycho territory; the grim story of a man who becomes the hands of his mother, who’s forced to do battle with himself and his evil urges. Dark, unpredictable and utterly weird, Jodorowsky’s cult hit is a queer parade of violence and sex. It’s repulsive and sexual, often in the same scene. It’s a under-worldly nightmare that matches dark humor with brutal imagery and a cast of oddly hypnotizing characters. (A-)

MANHUNTER (1988)

The first film to feature pop culture icon Hannibal Lecter (here called Dr. Lecktor), Michael Mann‘s Manhunter (which shoulda been called Mannhunter) is very 80s and very inferior to the award winning installation, Silence of the Lambs, that came on its heels a decade later. Brian Cox plays Lecktor but only has one or two scenes in the entire movie. Instead the focus is on Will Graham (played half-heartedly by CSI‘s William Petersen) and is a direct adaptation of Thomas Harris‘ “Red Dragon”. Later adapted by Brett Ratner with Edward Norton, Ralph Fiennes, Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Anthony Hopkins as Lecter, Manhunter can’t get outside of the shadow that is Silence of the Lambs. Plus, the almost total lack of Lecter leaves very few interesting characters who aren’t ever enough to keep us glued to the screen. Manhunter is a very sparse procedural, occupied by mediocre performances and a plot that I was already familiar with. Without my contextual knowledge, my experience with it may have been better but I cannot divorce the two in earnest. Amazingly enough, I prefer Ratner’s version to Mann’s (didn’t think that would ever be the case but I have to admit the truth. (C-)

PONTYPOOL (2008)

Pontypool is it’s own breed of horror movie. Rather than witness the violence first hand, we’re on the outskirts of the horror, listening in to the world breaking down from miles away. It’s a one location infection movie that puts us in the head place of the protagonists as they slowly, systematically piece together what exactly is happening outside their radio station doors. Stephen McHattie is Grant Mazzy, a controversial disc jockey who’s just relocated to the small rural town of Pontypool, which just so happens to be the victim of a bizarre infection spreading like wildfire through the county’s populace. Armed with a mic, a Marianna-deep baritone and sparse information from on-site reporter Ken Loney, Mazzy attempts to keep his cool while keeping the citizens informed of the outbreak. Using information depravation and long stretches of call-in auditory bits and pieces to ratchet up the tension, director Bruce McDonald uses psychological tactics on his audience brilliantly. The last act was a touch jumbled for me but the willingness to go somewhere completely new rather than go down a familiar route is to be admired. (B-)

SLACKER (1991)

Richard Linklater laid the foundation for all that would follow with wildly experimental stoner philosophy a la Slacker. As ADHD as the onslaught of characters running their mouth for their 15 seconds of fame, Slacker skips from one character to the next, allowing them to throw down some wild theory or perspective on life and then move onto the next. It’s almost anthological but the way that Linklater drifts his camera from one interaction to the other gives it a sense of place and continuity that a different approach wouldn’t have. Though he’d go on to make Waking Life which also allows characters to wax on the meaning of this or that, Slacker is a more compelling whole, a conscious journey through a cultural ethos, roaring with a sense of time and place. Although it gets a little long in the tooth towards the end – I wish he had shaved a good twenty minutes from the tail section – Slacker is a ferociously imaginative way to make a movie and, if you’re willing to turn your mind on, provides some really thoughtful (and sometimes really stonerish) reflections on life. (B)

BORGMAN (2014)

“What the hell did I just watch?” many will ask after watching Borgman, the enigmatic Dutch film nominated for the Palm d’Or at last year’s Cannes. And that’s part of the magic of it. Heads end up in concrete buckets, unregulated surgeries are never explained, characters fall under the spell of the mystical Borgman (Jan Bijvoet) while others appear to turn to hellish hounds and back. The story is simple enough and yet filled with mystery: a grizzled hermit living underground is ousted by a shotgun-wielding priest and his small band of townspeople. He takes to the street, knocking on door after door to try to find a bath. But his true intentions are far more sinister and far more veiled. Even by the end, we’re not exactly sure what Borgman and his crew’s intentions are but we know all that they’re capable of. This is part of the fun of Alex van Warmerdam‘s obscured goal; it’s not as simple as, “He was a vampire all along!” There’s something much more haunting about not getting the resolution we’ve been programed to expect. Another notch in the belt is the fact that even though it’s wildly weird and totally out there, it casts a spell that doesn’t allow you to look away. In the end, Borgman is confounding but not impenetrable, the kind of film that invites a few re-watchs and potential cult status. (B+)

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Weekly Review 55: RASHOMON, JU-ON, SISTER'S, FIEND, ABYSS, HELLRAISER, POULTRY, SOPHIE

September 21, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Hellraiser, Into the Abyss, Ju-On: The Grudge, My Best Fiend, Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead, Rashomon, Sophie's Choice, Weekly Review, Your Sister's Sister

This week has been a madhouse of sickness, screenings – The Boxtrolls, Tracks, A Walk Among the Tombstones, The Equalizer – and having nothing better to do than watch a bunch of movies at home. From 1950’s Akira Kurosawa to 2011 Lynn Shelton, I went on a tear of international and domestic, the old and the new cinema this week. Considering it’s still the beginnings of fall, I’ve been consuming horror movies like the sports oriented consume March Madness – though have admittedly slowed down since Kevin Smith‘s Tusk left me with harrowing nightmares. This week on the horror front though, the ones I expected to be good disappointed and vice versa. To quote The Kinks, “It’s a mixed up, muddled up shook up world“. Considering I ended up watching a lot more than I expected, let’s waste no more time and get down to business with this super duper long entry of Weekly Review.

RASHOMON (1950)

The very idea that a film’s narrative could be untrustworthy was a novelty to not only Japanese cinema in the 1950 but cinema around the world. A massively important film that brought Japanese film to the international stage, Rashomon sees Akira Kurosawa play with perspective in such a way that changed the game. Following an encounter between a bandit, a samurai and his wife, Kurosawa’s film plays with the idea of the unreliable narrator, presenting four interpretations of the same exact incident and forcing us to parse out a given character’s shaded motivations from the truth of their testimony. Considered a masterpiece, Rashomon, aided by Kazuo Miyagawa‘s groundbreaking and moody cinematography, holds up today for its inventive take on what makes a story believable in the first place and is certainly a much watch for fans of foreign cinema. (A-)

JU-ON: THE GRUDGE (2002)

Not very well acted or particularly scary, Ju-On: The Grudge fails to develop one single yarn worthy of interest. Instead franchise creator Takashi Shimizu essentially repeats the same gimmick over and over again with new victims in different locales. This wouldn’t be so egregiously lame if there weren’t seven additionally films in the series, all presumed scattershot and directionless. Broken down into six connected but disparate parts, Ju-On sees a bluish-white-tinged Japanese boy meow people to death and it just didn’t work for me at all. What evidently was horrifying for Japanese audiences and some horror fanboys failed to stir the slightest bit of intrigue or tension. Even the best scene – in which a spooky-faced girl awkwardly descends a staircase – is aped from an Exorcist deleted scene. (D)

YOUR SISTER’S SISTER (2011)

A definitively mumblecore effort from Seattle director Lynn Shelton, Your Sister’s Sister is a restrained, emotionally honest depiction of loss and love and the intersection between the two. Starring Mark Duplass, Emily Blunt and Rosemarie DeWitt, Shelton’s tale sees a man struggling to get over his brother’s death attempt to take a respite from society but ends up crossing paths with an unexpected relation… and maybe impregnating her. Funny, sensitive and well acted, Your Sister’s Sister likely represents the best of Shelton’s work and is certainly worth a watch for anyone looking for something light but not fluffy. Now available on Netflix. (B-)

MY BEST FIEND (1999)

Enough to convince me that were Kinski not a famous actor, he might have made quite a dictator, My Best Fiend attempts to get to the heart of the defunct relationship between German filmmaker Werner Herzog and his muse, actor Klaus Kinski. Filled with behind the scenes battles and Herzog poetically musing on events past, My Best Fiend seeks to answer how the two could have ever worked a day together, much less make five incredible films over the span of decades. I’d already been clued into the vanity and insanity that Kinski brought to set with him but watching the man in action is like having a front row seat to an atom bomb exploding. Hubristic, calculated and ultimately genius, Klaus Kinski is just one of those guys that comes around once in a lifetime and we’re lucky the madman stayed in front of the camera long enough to wrap a production…or 100. (B+)

INTO THE ABYSS (2011)

A show-stopping documentary from Werner Herzog, Into the Abyss takes a pensive look at capital punishment in Texas. By interviewing both the victims, the perpetrators and the families of both, Herzog’s pointed questions carry the expected brainwracking sensitivity that he brings to each of his endeavors. Rather than try to find a solution to the problem, Herzog characteristically tries to piece together the emotional impact of it all. From the executor to the witnesses and to the executed themselves, he helps us understand the mélange of messy thoughts running through their minds. It likely won’t change your stance on the death penalty – that’s not the point – because Herzog gives equal credence to both sides, even while making his own opposing views quite clear. A powerful, hypnotic documentary that’s likely to inspire a few tears. (A)

HELLRAISER (1987)

I had no idea how little the series iconic Pinhead would play into this gory horror affair as Hellraiser is a more much more interested in the idea of a twisted love triangle and human resurrection than it is with being a slasher of any sort. Clive Barker‘s 1987 British horror flick may have spawned a slew of lesser quality sequels and spinoffs but his original film – the only one which he directed – is actually quite a lot of fun. The practical effects are delightfully gooey and the love torn asunder plot line is marinated in equal amounts of Stockholm Syndrome and femme fatality. As a dated, creepy, yucky schlockfest, Hellraiser succeeds tremendously. (B-)

POULTRYGEIST: NIGHT OF THE CHICKEN DEAD (2006)

Carelessly racist, deplorably insensitive, greviously disgusting, obnoxiously homophobic, massively misogynistic, aggressively stupid and poorly sung to boot, Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead certainly accomplishes its goal of trying its hardest to be a bad movie. The totally childish sense of humor is actually fitfully funny but the juvenile charm wears off quickly, only to return in later portions where the gore is upped past 11 and the practical effects – though unconvincing – are enough to cull some laughs. Early on protagonist Arbie jokingly states, “My mom’s a retard and my dad’s blind”, which seems to kind of sum up the movie as an entirety. Attempting to skewer the genre in some kind of sadist, overblown way, Poultrygeist ends up the satirical equivalent of bukakke. (D+)

SOPHIE’S CHOICE (1982)

Outstanding performances from Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline make Sophie’s Choice an actor’s delight. Less admirable is the long-winded, onion-esque aspect of the two hour and thirty minute Holocaust opus. It’s a film in bad need of a narrative trim and even though the piece relies on our interaction and connection with the characters more than anything, such a pricetag of time never really seems called for or necessary. That being the case, the character work is still absolutely delightful – if you could throw such a cheery adjective as such a dreary film. Streep throws down one of her finest performances as a Polish Holocaust survivor, one that would go on to define the greatness she consistently brought with her to projects. From the perfect candor of her accent to the emotionality welling behind her fragile eyes, Streep is Sophie. Amazingly enough, co-star Kevin Kline almost threatens to overpower her when they share scenes together. While Streep took home the Oscar, Kline wasn’t even nominated – though he went on to win 6 years later for his (dramatically inferior) work in A Fish Called Wanda. (B+)

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Weekly Review 54: STAR, IRREVERSIBLE, HENRY, FEAR, WOYZECK, COBRA

September 13, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Cobra Verde, Henry: Portrait of a Killer, In Fear, Irreversible, Reviews, Star Wars, Weekly Review, Woyzeck

I was thinking that this had been a week without a lot of screenings but then I realized I’d seen four films this week – The Two Faces of January, The Guest, Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby and Tusk. I guess the fact that I’ve not been able to yet publish reviews for any of these that has me thrown off. None the less, it was an almost prolific week of watching at home, where I consumed six films including one of my all time favorites; Star Wars; a few more Werner Herzog features; Woyzeck and Cobra Verde; a couple of uber tense horrors; Irreversible and In Fear; and a film that I didn’t really like though I can understand other’s appreciation for it; Henry: Portrait of a Killer. So let’s get down to it and spit some Weekly Review.

STAR WARS (1977)

Perfect in its imperfections, Star Wars – and yes I mean A New Hope but remember, this was originally just called Star Wars – deserves its status as legendary. Unfortunately, the only copy I now possess is the demonic “Special Editions” in which Gredo shoots first, an inexcusably badly rendered Jabba the Hutt makes a completely nonsensical appearance and clumsy, ill-fitting CGI clutters up the otherwise inspired scenery but to experience just how much this annoys me – and dear god does it annoy me – is a testament to both the nostalgic power of the original Star Wars and how great George Lucas‘ original vision really was. Though Mark Hamill is noticeably shy of the acting mark, it’s nothing short of a joy watching Harrison Ford rock his character-defining smugness, Alec Guinness bring a classically trained believability to the otherwise goofy “Force”, Carrie Fischer own the only role she’s ever really owned and all the lively secondary characters – from the walking rug to those lovable droids – running amock. A definitive classic, even my sci-fi-adhoring girlfriend finally fell for the weirdness of Star Wars. I couldn’t have been more pleased. (A+)

IRREVERSIBLE (2002)

One of the most graphic and disturbing films ever imaginable with a rape sequence that will likely haunt me for the rest of my life, Irreversible is as impossible to watch as it is to recommend…and yet, it is fantastic. For those looking to “go the distance” and really challenge yourself to watch something so horrifying and so heinous that it will literally seer itself into your nightmares, this is it. It’s incredibly well done and viciously visceral as filmmaker Gaspar Noé backwardly tracks two men hunting down a rapist who’s brutally assaulted one of their girlfriends, Alex. Gratuitous almost seems like an understatement in this film that let’s the camera roll on and on and on in some of the most graphic sequences ever set to film. If the camera somersaults and seizure-inducing strobing don’t make you sick, the content might, and still Irreversible is a glaringly avant garde effort, a near brilliant art film so committed to its contrarian cause that it’ll happily spurn the leagues of those who do attempt to consume it. For those with a stomach of iron though, Irreversible will surely join the ranks of most “fucked up” movies you’ll ever see. (A)

IN FEAR (2013)

A taut little psychological thriller that could almost be defined as “one location”, Jeremy Lovering‘s In Fear sees a fresh couple of Irish festival-goers lost on the customary dirt road in the middle of some back-country woods. For such a fatigued concept, In Fear‘s vehicular invasion premise is preternaturally creepy, providing just the right amount of bumps in the night to spook those willing to turn the lights off and commit to the darkly lit scares. With only three actors in the entire film and an imaginably frugal budget (I couldn’t find official budget numbers anywhere), In Fear‘s biggest asset is Lovering’s ability to work simplicity to his advantage. The tension lives in the shadow, just outside the fray of Lovering’s spotlight tactics. Using our fear of the unseen as the most powerful tool in his arsenal, Lovering understands how to built up tension like a conflagration. An economical and tactile horror venture for those willing to take the unnerving plunge, In Fear commits to its small stature and massages these prudently scary elements to match the mold expertly. (B-)

HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A KILLER (1986)

This rough around the edges effort from indie filmmaker John McNaughton seems like it might have been culturally relevant and borderline antagonistic back in the 80s where it came from but nowadays, doesn’t hold much power and is more repulsive than intriguing. We’ve seen a dump truck of superior serial killer procedurals – from both sides of the fence – and though Henry might be responsible for inspiring some of those better films to follow, it’s hard to pretend that this was a film I liked. Michael Rooker (Merv of The Walking Dead) plays real life serial killer Henry Lee Lucas, a man to whom life is as meaningless as a noncommittal shrug. As Henry’s life becomes intertwined with redneck friend Otis (Tom Towles) and his younger, maltreated sister Becky (Tracy Arnold), his murderous ways spread like a cancer. Taking Otis under his wing, the two start a spree that leaves a trail of victims somewhere between 11 and thousands. According to Wikipedia, Lucas “initially admitted to having killed 60 people, a number he raised to over 100 and then to 3,000.” From this, you can imagine the bulk of the film. McNaughton’s fictionalized biopic is a narcissistic film with a jet black heart that isn’t much fun to watch though it’s undoubtedly respectably made considering available resources. (C-)

WOYZECK (1979)

One of Klaus Kinski‘s less definitive Hamlet-esque descents into insanity, Woyzeck pits a dullard against his own throbbing suspicions. A lowly rifleman who’s almost the social equivalent of Vincent D’Onofrio’s Leonard “Soap Socked” Lawrence from Full Metal Jacket, the titular Woyzeck is driven mad both by his unforgiving peers/patronizing superiors and adulterous wife. He’s a peon, a pariah, a bottom feeder at the command of all those around him. The only thing he can control is his family, woe be unto them. This cuckold gone bat shit crazy perfectly matches Kinski’s outlandish aura making Woyzeck a cautionary tale of Shakespearean compare. Adapted from a play of the same name by German dramatist Georg Büchne, Woyzeck may not be Herzog’s most noted accomplishment but it’s a soaring accomplishment none the less. (B+)

COBRA VERDE (1987)

We takes a trip to Africa for Cobra Verge, a narrative trip through colorful lands and splashy, living-on-the-edge cultures. Cobra Verde would be the last film that Klaus Kinski made with Werner Herzog (and preceded his death by just four years) and leaves Kinski with some monstrously powerful imagery. As has been my experience of all Kinski-Herzog collaborations, Kinski’s performance is the glue that holds Herzog’s sweeping, celestial elements together; he’s a dehumanizing black hole who eats our attention just as much as he apparently tormented those who worked with him. Cobra takes on slavery, outlaws and the bushman lifestyle with the kind of spontaneity and attention to detail that only Herzog’s wandering eye can achieve and it makes for some stunning imagery and mighty powerful scene work. (B+)

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Weekly Review 53: TEXAS, VIETNAM, NOSFERATU, HOUSE, INNKEEPERS

September 6, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Horror, Last Days in Vietnam, Nosferatu The Vamprye, Reviews, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The House of the Devil, The Innkeepers, Weekly Review

Now that fall is here – I know it’s not the Autumn Equinox yet or anything but September = fall in my mind so deal with it – I’ve taken myself hostage to an onslaught of horror movies. As Above/So Below proved to be a mighty fun time at the cinema – though I am amongst the few who seem to think so – and I’ve been trying to recapture that delightful feeling of creepiness since. I even took to Facebook to cull out some recommendations for those in the genre that have still escaped me. If you were one that suggested anything, many thanks and I’ll do my best to give ’em a watch and feature them in this segment. This week, with one exception, has been dominated by films of the horrifying ilk, a trend I foresee continuing up until Halloween. So bring it on horror movies because it’s time for Weekly Review.

TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (1974)

Marked as the one that started it all, Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a slasher film of the first degree. The themes and plot tropes may be cliche nowadays but it was Tobe Hooper and his hapless mess of a production team – in fear of going over budget, the nothing-short-of-unfortunate cast and crew often worked 16 hour days, 7 days a week in 100+ degree weather – that originated the foreboding gasoline clerk, the red herring hitchhiker, the masked, hulking villain and the use of power tools as murder weapons. Hooper is credited with bringing political undercurrents to Texas Chainsaw but being a child of the 80s, they were largely missed on me. What lasts though is the malicious intent and downright evil spirit of the piece. That and Marilyn Burns haunted – she was literally bound, gagged and tortured on set – performance. Buyer beware, this massacre may haunt you for nights to come. (B+)

LAST DAYS IN VIETNAM (2014)

Rory Kennedy‘s documentary on the fall of Saigon brings to light the horrifying other side of the fence that was the US’s withdrawal from the Vietnam War. Though officially ended by the Paris Peace Accords in 1973 , the war effort continued until April 1975 as the Northern Communist Army stormed south, forcing Southern loyalists and US forces and citizens out of the country by the plane full. Kennedy’s film is a lesson in the binary nature of war – of the salvation that comes with destruction and the irony of lives lost trying to save lives – but it’s a lesson nonetheless. More geared towards History classes than cinephiles, Last Days in Vietnam is a great vehicle to educate yourself on an oft overlooked component of a vicious war but doesn’t necessarily deliver more entrainment value than a really solid History Channel special. (C+)

NOSFERATU THE VAMPYRE (1979)

Klaus Kinsis again proves to be one of the most interesting actors ever to live in Werner Herzog‘s remake of the original Nosferatu. But as much as Herzog has aped the central conceit of the original, he has changed the setting and the soul of the film. In Black Plague-stricken England, everything has a different meaning and Kinski’s army of rats are as troubling as the fanged monster himself. The only trouble with Nosferatu is that every minute Kinski steps offscreen feels like a wasted minute. It’s not that co-stars Bruno Ganz, Rolan Topor and Isabelle Adjani aren’t great – they are – it’s just that Kinski’s that good in the role. There’s something about his intensity that makes you genuinely fear for the safety of his co-stars; it’s a magical devilishness that eludes any performer I know. As the notorious Count Dracula, Kinski dumps understated malice by the truckload and with Herzog’s signature lingering touch and gorgeous cinematography, it’s truly a sight to behold. (A-)

THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL (2009)

Ti West‘s tip of the hat to the shlock horror films of the 70s and 80s replicates both the long-lingering sense of dread and the simple camera techniques that dominated the era. Gone are the dolly zooms, replaced by the steady wide zoom of late; the credit titles blare in dated neon yellow; horrifying images in inglorious freeze frames. West’s descent into the occult is such a love letter to a bygone time that you can all but see the ink dripping from the screen. As much an exercise in viewer patience as anything else, The House of the Devil demands audiences willing to stick it out without the guts and gore or jump scares that have come to characterize the genre since Saw dropped into theaters. (B-)

THE INNKEEPERS (2011)

Another Ti West outing this week – thanks Netflix – this time dipping into the modern era, with all its advances in cinematic technology. West takes on a ghost story in very direct – almost too much so – fashion. I’m finding myself very seduced by West’s low key style; his patient tone, his teasing spirit. His totalitarian grasp on the production – he writes, directs and edits – makes for a very smooth, very deliberate endeavor where each piece is part of a larger whole rather than there to startle you briefly and be forgotten. The Innkeepers – while compelling – would have benefitted from some more flair to its boilerplate “ghost in a run-down hotel” setting. West has proved he can generate tension and make a film exactly how he wants it to be made, now I’m ready for him to really churn up the heat in the writing department. (C+)

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Weekly Review 52: AGUIRRE, RISKY, JODOROWSKY'S, 12 O'CLOCK, TAKEI

August 31, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged 12 O'Clock Boys, Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Jodorowsky's Dune, Risky Business, To Be Takei, Weekly Review

This week has held no press screenings until Thursday night which means I’ve had plenty of time to catch up on my hit list. As Above/So Below screened the night before it was opening, a generally telltale sign of bad things to come, but proved to be a madcap fright-fest. More by random chance than anything, I found myself watching three documentaries from 2014; Jodorowsky’s Dune, 12 O’Clock Boys and To Be Takei; each of which was great for their own reasons; a reminder of why I love documentaries as much as I do. Additionally, I caught up with two older classics, Werner Herzog‘s Aguirre: The Wrath of God and Risky Business starring Tom Cruise, both of which I enjoyed monumentally. So all in all, a very good week for Weekly Review.

AGUIRRE: THE WRATH OF GOD (1972)

Haunting and electrifying, Aguirre: The Wrath of God is the story of one man’s descent into madness with Klaus Kinski giving an unhinged performance as the hubristic titular character. The story follows Aguirre’s quest through Peru to find El Dorado as loyalties falter around him and insanity takes hold. It’s got an unnaturally real feel to it, accenting the existing eerieness of Werner Herzog‘s production. It’s as if Aguirre is partially a documentary in spirit and Herzog is a guide taking us into 1530 and stranding us there for 93 minutes. His minimalist, fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants directorial style leads to a bevy of moments that could have never been choreographed or planned, making the whole endeavor that much more wondrous and awesome. (A)

RISKY BUSINESS (1983)

If Ferris Bueller picked up a hooker on his day off, John Hughes‘ classic tale of teenage ruckus would probably look a lot more like Risky Business. Paul Brickman‘s venture into adolescent male fantasy is marked by a subtlety oft missing from most coming of age stories from the same generation. In such, Risky Business is a groundbreaking, almost earth-shattering picture. One can also point to Risky for Tom Cruise‘s breakout role and for good reason. Though Cruise’s voice is still crackling with youth, he showcases the effortless charm, rebellious tinge and winning smile that would go on to define his success. All in all, Risky Business is a winning formula that sees ultra-sexualized feminine guile slam on the shores of pubescent, budding masculinity and the funny, poignant mess such leaves behind. (B+)

JODOROWSKY’S DUNE (2014)

A captivating journey into what should have been but never was, Jodorowsky’s Dune is a bittersweet fairy tale. The most influential film that was never made, Jodorowsky’s vision for his film version of Dune has bleed a plethora of its distinctively forward-looking DNA into most iconic of films. Star Wars, Alien, Terminator, The Matrix, this mind-boogling documentary presupposes that without the Dune that never was, none of these would have ever existed. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect is the stable of off-kilter talent Jodorowsky was able to reel into the project, including none other than Dali (yes, that Dali) and Mick Jagger. Though it’s almost depressing to see such a work of passion crash and burn as hard as it did, at least this wonderfully captured chronology of Jodorowsky’s Dune will carry on the legacy of one of Hollywood’s wildest and most missed-out on production. (A-)

12 O’CLOCK BOYS (2014)

A searing look into the ethos of a gang of Baltimore dirt bikers, 12 O’Clock Boys follows young wannabe Pug as he aspires to join up with the revered crew. Named after the posture of a dirt bike pulling a gravity-defying wheelie, the 12 o’clock boys are at odds with the local police and the community at large. While they’re not gang members of the gat-wielding variety, their vehicular acrobatics puts other drivers at risk and often leads to the gruesome demise of their members. It’s a hard watch that’ll elicit conflicting emotions and is especially pertinent in the wake of the Ferguson events. While we as an audience struggle to relate to a fast growing Pug – the doc filmed him for three years – we can’t help but judge him and his hapless, tragic descent into hoodlumdom. As film tracks Pug over that span of years, we see a transformation from a child who dreamed of being a veterinarian to a teenager who kicks his own dog to quiet it down. Unfortunately, 12 O’Clock Boys ends abruptly and without warning, as if it had to be rushed to the theater and we’re left guessing of the fate of the character we’ve grown attached to, leaving us without the closure and moments of reflection that the film so badly needed. (B-)

TO BE TAKEI (2014)

Actor turned activist George Takei might be best known for his role as Sulu on the original Star Trek series but it’s his constant strife for social equality that makes him as important a figure as he is today. Bill Weber and Jennifer M. Kroot‘s biography digs up Takei’s roots, his tenure on Star Trek, his later plight for egalitarianism and his oddly bumbling, indescribably pure relationship with Brad Altman. Even though the documentarians seem more focused on cramming in all the facts than of stream-lined and laser-focusing their effort, they find immeasurably powerful moments in Takei’s brutal honesty, especially in the later half of the film. We learn that Takei’s struggle is not just that of a gay man but of a Japanese gay man; a man who’s been beat down by homophobic political policies; a man who spent a portion of his childhood in the American Japanese Internment camps. From being a politic ally to Bill Clinton to appearing on the Howard Stern Show, Takei’s journey as a human being has all but become one big boxing match for equality and even though the film biographing him isn’t perfectly constructed, it’s a forceful reckoning with our skewed political agendas and often emotionally hard-hitting to boot. Plus, it’s nice to spend a little more time with George Takei. (B)

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Weekly Review 51: GIGOLO, STAGE, CONGRESS, IMMIGRANT, FITZCARRALDO

August 25, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged Fading Gigolo, Fitzcarraldo, Reviews, Stage Fright, The Congress, The Immigrant, Weekly Review

From Woody Allen to Meatloaf, this installment of Weekly Review takes a look at some of the flicks of 2014 that haven’t met much fanfare. I visited John Turturro‘s Fading Gigolo, the SXSW horror movie Stage Fright, last year’s Cannes film The Congress starring Robin Wright, James Gray‘s historical drama The Immigrant and took a trip back in time for Werner Herzog‘s Fitzcarraldo. In theaters, I faced down Chloe Moretz for an interview and squared off against Sin City: A Dame to Kill For and If I Stay, two bad movies, and The November Man, which I’ll have a review of this week. In general, we’ll write this week off as August woes.

Fading Gigolo (2014)

When Woody Allen and John Turturro share a room, Fading Gigolo is a poignant, engaging dramedy with life and a lion’s share of wit. Whilst on their own, Turturro’s directorial project falls short, often coming up with goopy handfuls of sand. Gigolo is certainly better than the obvious comparison of Rob Schneider‘s bottom-feeding Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo but suffers its own rom-com trappings. As the romance ratchets up so does our suspension of disbelief run out of steam. Tender and real, Turturro gives one of his better performances and it’s nothing short of a joy to watch Woody ooze out lines on screen again. Liev Schreiber is quietly impressive as morally upstanding, Hasidic Jew antagonist Dovi but it becomes increasingly harder and harder to buy Vanessa Paradis‘ Avigal. (C+)

Stage Fright (2014)

On an actual stage, Stage Fright would probably work better. Plop it in an off-Broadway theater, fill it with fresh young faces and anchor it with Meatloaf and you might even have a hit. As is, it’s a convoluted mess that never makes a lick of sense. The musical elements – with songs that are more cringe-worthy than catchy – fit awkwardly amongst the gory, backstage murder scenes with long bouts of bloodlessness adding little momentum to the long-winded proceedings. Some of the more ludicrously campy elements do shine through the muck but it can’t make up for the mismatched genres slammed awkwardly together. (D+)

The Congress (2014)

Occasionally touching, always strange and a visual feast in the spirit of The Beatle‘s Yellow Submarine, The Congress is a recklessly ambitious take on the future of Hollywood and mankind. Robin Wright stars as a version of herself who sells her image to Miramount (an almost lame on-the-nose parody) in order to stay relevant. As the film crosses the 45 minute mark, everything turns animated and things tend to get out of director Ari Folman‘s control. There’s a wonderful scene right before the transition in which Harvey Keitel and Wright share a powerful moment of self-reflection and admiration. It’s so full of heart and earnest emotion that it makes the jarring shift to Folman’s wackadoo animation all the more confuzzled. Though much of what occurs in the second act could have been synthesized into a more focused and fluent movement of ideas, the film finishes on an extreme high note. Knowing that the film took seven years to get together and finish, it’s no wonder that some things have jumped the proverbial shark. Even with all its slips and follies, The Congress is an acid trip of a flick, with all the highs and lows that accompany such. (B-)

The Immigrant (2014)

A costume drama that’s proved divisive amongst critics and audience members, James Gray‘s The Immigrant is a dressed-up tale of woe that ultimately disservices the talented actors within. Marion Cotillard is Polish immigrant Ewa, who has arrived on Ellis Island with a sick sister and a bit of a slutty reputation. She’s swoon swept up by a powerful pimp (Joaquin Phoenix) who forces her into prostitution so she can pay for her sister’s care. There are occasionally strong scenes, most of which start and end with Jeremy Renner, but Gray’s morbid fascination leaves little room for his characters to breathe. Ewa is often lifeless, a victim of circumstances who we’re told is more of a siren than we ever are lead to believe and Phoenix’s Bruno never goes through the transformation his final scenes seem to suggest he has. All in all, there are glimmers of good in The Immigrant but they’re largely snuffed out by borderline bad writing and an often boring tempo. (C-)

Fitzcarraldo (1982)

Werner Herzog‘s trip to the Peruvian jungle didn’t go as planned. While filming Fitzcarraldo, he lost star Jason Robards to dysentery. Robards replacement, frequent Herzog collaborator Klaus Kinski, was so hated by the local tribesman in the film that they offered to kill him for Herzog. From a production side, Herzog insisted on doing all the heavy lifting – quite literally – without the use of any special effects, leading to many on-job injuries and countless wasted hours. It’s a project where the “Making Of” is entirely more interesting than the final product; an admirable effort in the face of adversity that doesn’t quite come together on its one. Fitzcarraldo just never really sucks the viewer in. Aside from Klaus Kinski’s manic performance, the tale is simple and long-drawn, offering the plight of a would-be rubber baron that never takes the time to really flesh out the themes bubbling under the surface. (B-)

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Weekly Review 50: INDIGO, TRANS4MERS, IDA, 13, THE GOOD

August 15, 2014 by Matt Oakes Posted in Weekly Review Tagged 13 Sins, Ida, Mood Indigo, The Good the Bad the Weird, Transformers: Age of Extinction, Weekly Review

It’s been more than two weeks since our last outing at the Weekly Review outpost so I’ve got a bit to catch up on. At the theater, I gobbled up Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Into the Storm, The Giver and Love is Strange (review soon). Since most of the television shows I watch are off air for the summer season, I’ve had a dive into some 2014 films that had slipped under the cracks. I know it seems funny to consider Transformers: Age of Extinction amongst the “forgotten few” but it’s one I missed the screening of that took me a long time to get around to. Three hours of robokake is quite a commitment. Without further adieu, let’s dive in and do some Weekly Review.

Mood Indigo (2014)

Michel Gondry outdoes himself with Mood Indigo. His latest breeze-fest is so wrecklessly bizarre and aggressively strange that the initial charm soon turns to cutesiness and wears off quickly. Without characters that feel as if they’re living, breathing human beings, Gondry’s film is a tiring exploration of how far an audience will tolerate strangeness for the sake of strangeness. Another misfire from a man full of misfires, Mood Indigo is a Rufus Wainwright song; intriguing at first but quickly tiresome. (C)

Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)

A scrabble of CG set pieces and insanely overwrought characterization, Transformers: Age of Extinction is Bay at his best and worst. The shorts are shorter, the explosions louder, the robots more robotic. American flags wave in the background for no reason whatsoever. What’s so amazing is the fact that at 165 minutes, a movie overstuffed with eardrum-shattering soundsplosions and Optimus Prime whacking enemies with a massive broadsword threatens to put you to sleep. Further, it fails to reach the technical heights of Bay’s last installment, especially considering that the celebrated Dinobots don’t come into play until a good two hours after the movie starts. (D+)

Ida (2014)

Ida has a lot going for it: Pawel Pawlikowski stepping back into the limelight; nuanced performances from leads Agata Trzebuchowska and Agata Kulesza; a thoughtful, meditative soul; crisp, clean black-and-white cinematography from Lukasz Zal; and historical import. Pawlikowski’s film follows orphan Anna, who is about to take her vows. Before she does, her Mother Superior urges her to discover her roots, upon which Anna discovers that not only is she Jewish but her family was murdered in the Holocaust. Ida is not always an easy film but it’s potent and powerful, rife with themes of absolution and guilt. (B)

13 Sins (2014)

A clever concept undone by piss poor acting, 13 Sins imagines a world in which a powerful group of one percenters enlist everyday nobodies to participate in a twisted game. The game is simple; complete a given task and you win money. The first task is to kill a fly ($1000). The second, to eat it ($3500). As you can imagine, as the dollar signs skyrocket, so do the heinousness of any given assignment. It’s a less clever version of E.L. Katz‘s wonderful Cheap Thrills and, as mentioned, suffers greatly from a cast performing at a low bar. Devon Graye in particular is almost offensively bad, especially considering he’s playing a special needs character more inspired by Simple Jack than Rain Man. (C-)

The Good, The Bad, the Weird (2008)

This is how you remake a film: rip its beating heart out, slam it onto a new continent, whitewash it with different cultural meaning and pump it full of adrenaline. Gorgeously photographed and inlaid with decadent set designs, The Good, The Bad, The Weird takes Sergio Leone‘s magnum opus out of Spain and plants it in Manchuria with a hard-R rating. It’s a wacky take on a classic that’s liberal with its reinvention but homages in ample doses. The skippy score and whack ado performance from Kang-ho Song makes it a rollicking good time and a film worth seeking out and slurping up. (A-)

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