Oh wow, this really stinks. You kind of know from the DVD cover that these ones are only going to be average at best, but holy shit, really regret picking this one up out of the bargain bin. Time isn’t on my side either today so a short review of this trash is the only thing it gets.
Sad couple Albert and Rose are grieving the loss of their two children, and Rose is taking it pretty hard. So hard that they’re starting to see and hear things, strange doohickeys are happening in the house, pictures are falling off the wall, words are being written in the mirror… you get the drill.
You can really tell by the first 10-15 minutes how poorly drawn out and planned this all was. The lack of material is incredibly frustrating. Nearly every element of the story seems to have been borrowed from somewhere else. And while the actors are only amateurs, their robotic delivery of the script is cringeworthy and ruin any talent they may have wanted to show.
Although the writing is so incredibly weak and brittle, a little is admittedly saved by the generally mild editing and doable camera work, plus a nicely crafted soundtrack which gently idles away in the background. This was definitely a low budget gig so the production isn’t that bad; probably the best thing in all its painfully stagnant banality.
Working in a morgue sounds fascinating. Not only is the morbid landscape of the dead keeping their secrets so quietly, there’s also the prospect that one day they might threaten to reveal them. Then again, it’s likely they won’t. At least they’d be the easiest subjects in the world to protect as they won’t complain about food, sleep or treatment. The perfect client!
Security guard and student Bells finds that his job isn’t so simple however, and becomes wound up in suspicion and deceit in this mediocre supernatural crime mystery. Though roughly entertaining and generally watchable, it’s way short of anything fantastic or memorable and hardly anything to remember, perhaps apart from the stupid wigs.
Wide-eyed Bells seems like he has a good rap at first. Friends, college, and a sweet gig at a medical facility. Things take a tumble when the murders begin, and though innocent, the evidence puts himself straight in the spotlight, facing off detectives and also dealing with his stupid friend who seems to be nothing but trouble.
The best thing to me was the technically dark setup. There’s barely a scene where a room isn’t drenched in darkness, where cigarette smoke isn’t bouncing off forbidden files. The efficiently structural cinematography makes for good viewing too, capturing atmosphere, actions and emotions with clarity and efficiency.
It’s a really corny watch though. It’s so cheesy, and the over-theatrical soundtrack doesn’t help either, helping to remove the mood of any real horror. Apart from being general thriller fodder, none of the characters seem to hold much purpose or live in any kind of respective reality. Somehow the original translation became lost in an appeal for fashionable cinematics, and the result is a fairly drab thriller.
Ever since Battle Royale, there’s been endless copies of the bewildering Japanese student slaughter. Each competing to be more destructive, nihilistic and cruel, they also tend to throw in nonsense, pursuing to be subversive and nonsensical at the same time. There may have been forerunners though that was the definite cinema moment in my opinion to spawn them all. (Probably wrong opinion.)
As the Gods Will is the latest entry in such hyper-brutal glorification of violence and it’s not bad, not great, not good, somewhere in between. Influenced heavily by facsimilies of the works described as above, this has a few somewhat worthwhile moments of enjoyable torture yet doesn’t really go anywhere near the emotional depths that it drives to be; it’s shock value for the general sake of it, and it soon gets old real quick.
Characters are whimisically whisked away to be murdered without a shred of mercy. So how can you expect to build any kind of serious ties or invest emotion in them? That’s the viewer’s challenge here and it’s not easy. Student Takahata is suddenly thrown into a deadly arena of survival when he manages to escape a bizarre bouncing head which turns his fellow students into… beads. And while gloating all the time, because that makes it more scary, right?
Stumbling over a pile of his dead comrades, Takahata finds that the worst is yet to come, embarking along what feels more like an episodic series of arena-style competition crammed into a viewing then one real movie. Each scene is so long – they may be designed to generate interest in the various personalities, but this is stuff is so corny that it would only, well, appeal to kids. Apologies to all kids.
Much of the horror is reliant on the animated enemies which aren’t too offkey. Technically they’re very competently composed and fearsome; after the first 10 seconds, they get really cheap and tacky, and this isn’t such a bad thing because the idea of being devoured by a generic advertisement digital moscat could have had a ring of irony in its murderous rampage. Since the film doesn’t take itself so seriously anyway, this feels like a missed shot at an open goal for self-criticism.
Takahata’s adolescent ruminations ultimately lead the narrative, and they are despairingly boring, though many moments – especially including the various tests he is subjected to – interestingly veer in the direction of criticism and statement about and against society. Sadly, although there’s a lot of noise, there isn’t much bravery or courage to back it up.
If you’re going to watch this, expect to be trapped in a 25-minute time loop of killing, infighting, dramatic victory, repeat. That isn’t a careless exaggeration; there is so much structural repetition of idea that the director could have created a more sustainable approach by marketing their concept as a string of episodes, rather than cramming them all into one 2-hour festival of mayhem. Don’t chop your films up like your sushi.
Bookworm Tiffani, bully Ella and the easily bullied Kevin are dying of boredom in their dull home city. In order to alleviate their frustration, and hopefully get some ass, they take a trip upstate to the town Swamp Hollow which impresses them with its serial killer reputation, and set out for their mission of history exploration and cheap thrills.
There’s a problem though – because a real life serial killer is on the loose. As soon as the gang set foot in town, the killings begin to start again, and the friends are left to fight for survival against the terrible masked enemy with his arsenal of industrial equipment and merciless taste for human flesh.
The violent execution displayed in the introduction is a rather dishonest representation of how most of the film goes. Rather than the urban action-packed feature it promises, as a torturer thrusts a cruel corkscrew into the belly of another victim, the tale then reverts and degenerates to dedicate itself mostly about the trio themselves as they wander about town, eventually and slowly encountering the killer.
Although together they conjure a somewhat interesting overlap, with the wildly different personalities making for curious results, their characters are neither sufficiently balanced nor devoted in time or quality. And anyway they’re no match for actually putting together a real story. Deficient in the way of any reliable material, the film pathetically limps from scene to scene, desperately lacking in content.
While all the faces in the flick are pretty much forgettable, Ella is one of the most cringeworthy and unlikable characters in a trash flick to exist. They are pointlessly egotistic, tediously self-centered, insufferably bombastic, and insultingly narcissistic; their overacting when they are hunted perhaps makes the best visual performance though, and that’s not saying much.
This is tragically fucking bad. Much more could have been created from the somewhat interesting mask-wearing character of death – honestly, just a drop more ability in that area would have made a difference. And the soundtrack isn’t bad either. Since its so ridiculous, and ending on such an appallingly bad twist, it’s definitely 100% one to miss.
Discovering themselves in a strange version of purgatory, a small group of people work to extrapolate and unlock the meaning of their surroundings in this spiritually themed soul-searching drama which begins with admittedly an interesting presentation, but soon ultimately becomes a rather boring affair.
This is kind of a survival horror except no one ever survived and it’s not a survival horror. Instead, the show is about souls – lost ones, that didn’t really make it anywhere in life, and seemingly couldn’t cut the mustard to actually make something of themselves in the afterlife either.
There’s a lot about this intriguing idea which is potentially appealing and sadly all the elements it discusses are only touched upon in a very superficial way. The mystical and supernatural realms explored are mostly boil down to special effects or theatrical showdowns. It’s hardly a unique or groundbreaking concept either – not too dissimilar from an atrocious flick called Collapse reviewed in the beginnings of this project.
Though the graphics are doable, what grinds the whole view down is the terrible relationship between the camera and the characters. The amateurish performances are bad enough (and not helped by such an overblown script), and then comes along the sloppy editing and consistently shaky camera. Did the company really have to choose an active earthquake fault to film the production?
Another difficult pill to swallow is the dull and drab lighting which permeates every scene. There’s something here which is missing – to a non-professional as myself, all it can be described is an incompetence of establishing meaningful contrast. This setup would have been good for perhaps a relatively brief flashback maybe, being used against a foreground of excitable acting and rapid-pace cutting was most curious.
Finally, the insistence of having stupid twists at the end has to stop. C’mon, they’re so goddamn obvious! Again, there’s some surprisingly exploitable science fiction ideas here which could certainly be expanded and built upon to build for a more worthwhile watch instead of the use of these pretentious overdramatics.
Trying to grasp how many stories have been influenced in some way or another by Lovecraft would not be easy. This isn’t just the occasional movie with a subtle adapation or the occasional homage; you’d need entire libraries of art, literature and music and could not ignore the studios actively in production today which have in some way or another borrowed some ideas of his wild creativity and made them the central spine of a new story.
The theme of an ancient universal evil and its disasterous entry into the modern world is so original and threatening that our own understanding of technology and reality become aggressively questioned on a primal level. There’s no use turning to the men of science – they were even the first ones to give up in this dark world. And even from a distant perspective, one can see the question of religion and supersitution which exists in competition (or perhaps as part?) of our consumerist culture.
In this wretchedly dull family flick about demons escaping from their hellish realm and clawing into earth via a middle class backyard, the viewer sadly must face different questions about their sanity as to what force encouraged them to watch it in the first place. Presumably crafted to be a Home Alone meets Color From Outer Space, several children are faced with survival against the demonic presence emanating from a crashed meteor which threatens to break down more than just their surburian picket fence but into our very world itself.
Drab, repetitive, predictable and dull, this is more a case of the superficial than the supernatural. With a predominantly cast of children, there is at least some attempt to explore their joys, yet little to exploit their fears. This is what really stood out most to me – the two-dimensional stereotypical characters and their lack of personality. That isn’t to say the acting was badly bad; they are so poorly written and prepared to a depth for the impending destruction that unfolds.
The special effects aren’t that bad, with some surprising monster elements and gentle body horror, and the elementary plodding pace finally picks up towards the end making for a somewhat satisfying ending providing you could ever manage the first 15 minutes. What can’t be forgiven are the cartoon-like protagonists. With a set built in the family home, there is sadly little exploration of disasters that can happen there too without need for something from outer space; and this was released only a year after Stephen King’s It, whom was at least prepared with writing young minds who were coping beyond the agony of losing a toy rocket ship.
A sad casuality is the outstanding “Love Will Find A Way” by Vince Carlucci. This hit is played during the party scene in the early stages of the film and is sadly lost in time. What a great track. What a horrible end. Trapped forever in a mediocre children’s film. Someone must have pissed off the old gods real good for this.
When you want to review a movie, it is editorial licence to present a general plot synopsis which establishes the base theme and plotline which a viewer can expect. You don’t have to of course. There’s alternatives, however it’s the easy option for shitty writers, if you’re having trouble building a momentum, or if you just can’t be bothered anymore.
Apart from what could be explained as a roughly supernatural or psychological drama, there’s no reasonably short explanation for this flick that wouldn’t deviate, misrepresent, or dull. Even though most blurbs announce something about a parasite, this statement is too objective or direct for such a thoughtfully abstract piece of media. How confounding; and how so satisfying too.
Upstream Color in its basic and most honest format is a romance. Although, it hardly begins as one. Violently assailed by a strange creature, Kris wakes up one day to find her life completely destroyed. Soon she meets Jeff: a similar victim of circumstance. After picking things together, it’s not long before she’s learning more about her attackers, and that Jeff might not as innocent as he seems.
Rather than the technically bewildering engineering of Primer, this is a more human piece of engineering from Carruth who again stars in his own creation and puts up a somewhat drab job as the cowardly and selfish Jeff, while Seimetz fantastically plays the pathetic and broken Kris. As the lead characters, they’re more bottled than beer, and not exactly characters to remember.
The star of the show isn’t either of them, however; it’s the breathtakingly masterful direction. Upstream Color divebombs throughout planes of reality and plays with consciousness with an ease as taking a stroll. Nihilistically critical, human beings are reduced to animals, their nature discussed as no better than pigs, herded as easily as by the superior force of whim or weather.
Painfully abstract and self-encrypted, it tells itself as a waking surreal nightmarishness, bouncing between mirrors of thought, refusing to land on solid ground. Simultaneously far and close to narrative, the fluctuating account of events of Kris and Jeff become hopelessly loose and entwined, all the while a figure in the background playfully toys with your intelligence.
Brilliant and exceptional, this is an outstanding technical achievement and a rare display of quality modern cinema. Even if drama isn’t your thing, its explorations are hard to describe from horror. And if it is, get ready for a descent into hell.
After being released from Riker’s – holy fuck that must have been some fucked up shit you did to get there – ex-convict Bobby Reynolds attempts to throw away the past and start his life over again. He gets a job, rebuilds the relationship with their girlfriend, keeps out of trouble, and hopes to settle down.
Unfortunately for them, their troubles are not over yet. In fact they only appear to be beginning. Despite a free man, not only does the general public distrust him, he must also face more opposition in the form of a growing supernatural presense which promises to destroy everything he’s worked for.
Lame, dull, and unexciting, The Echo tells the tale of Reynolds as he is molested by strange hauntings and evil spirits. Ignorant to the fascinating subject of incarceration and prison culture, the background of the ex-convict protagonist is blatantly fabricated, and more of a quick excuse to present the fearsome reality of an isolated and excluded individual, without the authenticity to back it up.
The unsmiling Bobby is a theatrical disappointment. They’re obviously a very educated and capable actor who relishes their role, and yet the script demands they lack feelings, emotion, or to take joy in pretty much anything. Their permanent grimness isn’t scary or forboding: it just looks dull-witted and unintelligent. This goes for most of the 2 bit two-dimensional characters who all get to look as dumb than concrete.
The incredibly arranged lighting produces an enchanting and musky atmosphere of forboding and warmth. Scenes speak in their own silence as they’re bathed in an intimate darkness and powerful flourescent scarlet. It’s very slickly designed and professional worthy of any crime thriller mash or slasher, easily setting the ground for an ultimate horror.
Sadly, tomorrow never comes. While the meandering tale is capable of avoiding to fall into complete nonsense, nor does it present any particular threats, ideas or characters worthy of interest. It’s just very basic. Beautiful, calm, and enchanting, but uncompelling, shallow, and basic.
Falling from a world that has rejected her, a calm, mild-mannered and able student ultimately becomes lost in this modern tragedy, which aims to rebel against the normalized idealism of youth and family, and instead bravely adventures to illustrate the creation of what appears to be a failed throwaway teen.
Though intelligent, considerate, and full of potential, too bad for them; because they’re in the wrong place at the wrong time. Schoolgirl Kita’s prospects are a wreck before they even have a chance to develop: her father is dead, their mother is a mess, and once she starts skipping school to discover the real world, that’s when she discovers the real world.
This new place of adulthood doesn’t have much more to offer than the previous one. Along her way, Kita befriends a rogue who makes a living from extorting innocent drivers and a misfit who lives in an industrial wasteland. Though distant, short-lived and fleeting, these seem to be the most sincere and precious friendships of her adolescence.
The majority of the tale is coldly told without dialogue. Language is used as sparingly as possible. When used, it’s icy and grave. Instead of using an overt narrative, most of the story is spoken through human movement against a backdrop of silence and calm, forcing the viewer’s appeal to their own empathy in order to make sense of the situation.
It’s clear there is a fascination to explore the outcasts of society and how they are born. Kita has no chance in this life. This is an intoxicating horror of the ordinary where there’s no riddle to be solved or encryption to be decoded. There’s no moral of the story here – and there is no need to be. Sometimes lives just turn out bad.
Captivating and incredible, Harmful Insect may be a slow burner, but it’s a brutal watch about isolation and realism all the same. Portraying depravity without being depraved, displaying loss without becoming lost, and capturing the heartbreaking destruction of a life with all the unfortunate moments that made it fateful, it skillfully grasps the harshest and most difficult topic of all – everyday life.
Over-dramatic techno-thrillers like this were all the rage in the 90’s. Nowadays they’re pretty cringeworthy and maybe for an unfair reason. Our relationship with technology has changed dramatically over the last 20 years: We generally want more sustainability, accountability, and respect with our technology, if anything to avoid our computers to start running around in the streets with guns and ideas of their own.
Sadly, this is the case in Virtuosity. Ex-cop Barnes must face off a crazy computer program adorned with a humanoid body and embedded with different personalities – one of whom killed Barnes’ family, destroyed their career and catapulted them into prison. With the police at a loss, it is up to him to face the deranged killer, stop the fucker from killing even more people, and maybe retrieve a normal life in the process.
While routinely dabbling in subjects of crime and technology, the theme of the play is animosity – specifically that of Barnes and his taunting nemesis. Crowe puts on a thorough and excellent job of this, leaping from one insane state of mind to the next; while the unsmiling Washington only appears determined and resentful, robotic and stunned to his counterpart in comparison.
There’s further irony as the story uses the antagonist to exploits flaws in human society. Unlike the stone cold Terminator, this artificial intelligence is narcissistic and eccentric, exploiting and perhaps even criticizing popular television as an influence. For instance, when it hijacks a TV station, kills the staff and puts on its own show, ratings skyrocket!
These interesting discussions and the rest are cut short by the film’s taste for underwhelming fight scenes, crappy story-lining and also an irritatingly intrusive overblown score. The racy and constant editing burdens the perspective of any scene, and the heavy orchestral booming is especially overblown, annoying and tedious.
Possibly the most lacking area is the inability for the script to convincingly generate people capable of choices. Though almost reaching a display of legendary unison between evil and goodness, where both are represented by individuals and neither far apart, instead all the humans are stale, contrived, and predictable against the mad AI. Strangely, it’s that who seemed to be the most human after all.
Possession Media 