Month: September 2018

Just a quick update:  On Tuesday, September 11, I will be flying to England for a vacation as well as attending the Fighting Spirit Film Festival.  I’ll provide more details on what you can expect me to cover on the festival.  I won’t be back until the 20th, so I figure I’d just give everyone a heads up, on what’s coming.  This is something that I’ve been looking forward to for a while, so I’m excited.  It’s my first time over there, so I’ll be sure not to get into any trouble.  If anything comes up, I’ll let you know.

For this post, I want to take a look at movies that ended up getting a rather….questionable reputation, despite the fact that they aren’t really that bad.  At least, not in my opinion.  These are the movies that I believe deserve a second chance and are not necessarily as awful as some audiences and critics seem to make them out to be.  These can be anything from short films to big-budget blockbusters.  I’m not really employing any particular set of rules for this list, so anything goes.  If there are any movies that you feel deserve a second look, feel free to list them in the comments below.  So…with that in mind, let’s get this show on the road.

The Black Cauldron

Believe it or not, there were a few times when Disney was not at the top of their game.  The 80s was a particularly rough decade for the company.  Disney took risks with films like Something Wicked This Way Comes and The Black Cauldron.  The Black Cauldron caused a bit of a controversy back in 1985, because of it’s not-so-squeaky-clean story and visuals.  This was a very dark animated feature that dealt with some pretty grim stuff including demon-like creatures and armies of the dead as well as black magic.  The animation was amazing with some truly stunning visual sequences and unique character designs.  However, those designs were terrifying to young children, so parents were not particularly happy with the film.  The Horned King, voiced by the late John Hurt, was one of the most freaky villains in Disney’s line-up.  Again, the visuals were terrific but very dark and Gothic.  While it’s not one of the strongest films in the company’s repertoire, it does provide children with some real important lessons including responsibility, the value of friendship and sacrifice.  It’s also a fantastic film for Halloween.

Dune(1984)

David Lynch’s Dune is a film that should have been much better than it was.  Yet, what we ended up getting was still really good.  The problem is that Universal Studios wanted to turn a 1000-page book into a two-and-a-half hour film.  You really can’t do that and expect it to make any kind of sense, especially when the source material is packed to the hilt with various complex ideas and themes.  Dune ended up being a victim of studio interference.  It wasn’t the first time something like this happened, and it wouldn’t be the last.  In spite of the film’s problems, it’s got a lot going for it.  It has a unique visual style with amazing set, costume and creature designs.  It’s also got one of the biggest ensemble casts at the time including Jurgen Prochnow, Patrick Steward, Kyle MacLachlan, Brad Dourif, Linda Hunt, and Francesca Annis.  While the film had some pacing issues, it was still a very intriguing and intelligent film.  It deserved a lot better than what Universal gave it.

Legend

The 80s were not kind to certain film directors like Ridley Scott.  His science fiction film, Blade Runner, was not very well received by critics and audiences at the time and it bombed.  It wasn’t until much later that the film gained a cult following.  I think the same could be said for his fantasy film, Legend.  This was a film, in spite of its glaring issues and obvious inspirations, didn’t connect with audiences.  It certainly didn’t help that Tom Cruise’s performance was awful, but it felt like the film ripped elements from much better sources.  That being said, the film does have its merits.  One:  The visual style is beautiful.  The sets and designs were top-notch and the atmosphere was amazing.  Now, the real star of the show was Tim Curry, who was unrecognizable as the Lord of Darkness.  The design for Curry’s character was beyond anything we had seen up until that point.  Darkness looked like the devil from biblical myth, and it was astounding.  Now, depending on which version of the movie you saw, the soundtrack would have been very different.  North American audiences got a soundtrack which featured Tangerine Dream.  International copies of the film featured an equally strong soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith.  International audiences also got a much different cut of the film, both of which have been included in various DVD and Blu-Ray releases.  I would definitely say give this one another shot.

Highlander 2

Boy, the original release of this film was a real stinker.  The original film is regarded as a huge cult classic and didn’t need a sequel.  It got 4 sequels and three TV series, one of which was a spin-off and the other was an animated show.  The second film in the Highlander film series had the Immortals come from a different planet called Zeist.  ….And that’s where it lost people.  It was absolutely ludicrous in terms of its execution and concept.  Now, to be fair, there was a huge amount of studio interference which caused the film to go over budget and the commentary on pollution and the ozone layer was ham-fisted at best.  That being said, I feel that the film is worth taking a look at again on Blu-Ray for a number of reasons.  For one:  The whole planet Zeist idea has been removed.  Instead, Immortals are exiled centuries into the future.  It’s still ridiculous, but it’s better than having them being aliens.  Another change was the visual aesthetic.  Instead of the shield being a red eye-sore, the film-makers opted for a blue motif, which made it less of a head-ache.  There were also some CGI added to enhance some of the backgrounds and effects, which actually improved the quality of the film.  They also eliminated a number of scenes which needed to go, so the pacing is much better.  Don’t get me wrong:  It’s still a bad movie, but on Blu-Ray, it’s a hell of a lot more watchable.

Darkman

Director Sam Raimi exploded on the scene with his first real movie called The Evil Dead.  It was a dark, violent, yet humorous supernatural film that took the world by storm.  It’s earned its place among the collections of many a film buff, myself included.  Sam Raimi, is also a fan of comic books and superhero films.  Believe it or not, Spider-Man was not his first foray into the genre.  His first superhero film was actually Darkman.   Released back in 1990, Darkman was a story that involved a scientist-turned-vigilante after being horribly disfigured when criminals attacked his laboratory.  Using synthetic skin to infiltrate the gang and take his revenge the character of Darkman was unlike any that we had seen before.  It was clearly influenced by movies like Batman, but instead of being based on an actual comic book, Darkman was an entirely original creation by Sam Raimi.  While it wasn’t exactly the most well-received film, it definitely got a following.  Whlie the film featured some pretty strong performances by Larry Drake, Colin Friels, and Frances McDormand, the film belonged to Liam Neeson.  He is the core of the film, and the center of the tragedy that befell his character.  His performance was as heartbreaking as it was over-the-top at times.  It was an absolute blast, and it’s just a shame that Darkman didn’t get the recognition it deserved.  The musical score by Danny Elfman made things a lot more interesting as well.  Definitely check this one out.

While there are other films that people should take another look at, these are the ones that stand out to me the most, despite their problems.  Sometimes, a second chance is needed and I think these ones are absolutely worth a second look.

Released: June 2018

Director: Ari Aster

Rated R

Run Time: 127 Minutes

Distributor: Lionsgate Studios/A24

Genre: Horror/Drama

Cast:
Toni Collette: Anni
Alex Wolff: Peter
Gabriel Byrne: Steve
Milly Shapiro: Charlie
Ann Dowd: Joan

I’ve been a massive fan of the horror genre since I was a kid.  I’ve seen a lot of horror movies over the years, from Last House on the Left to Friday The 13th to Cannibal Holocaust.  I’ve pretty much seen nearly everything under the sun when it comes to horror.  During that time I’ve seen a lot of great horror movies like The Exorcist to generic garbage like Pulse.  Great horror movies aren’t necessarily difficult to come by, but you do have to sift through some serious shit to get to the really good stuff.  However, over the past 15-20 years, the genre has seen an upswing of cheap, weak-ass horror flicks made for the whiny teen crowd who can’t handle serious horror.  Movies like Slender Man and The Bye-Bye Man are not what I consider real horror as they rely far too much on cheap jump scares.  To me, that’s not effective horror at all.  The best horror films don’t just make you jump, but they get under your skin and make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.  Movies like The Exorcist, The Omen, and The Witch understood this very well and are among some of the best examples of the genre.  Well, I have another one that really deserves to counted among the best: Hereditary.

Opening at a memorial service, Annie is delivering a eulogy to her recently deceased mother who was abusive and manipulative.  After the funeral, Annie and her family head home to try and live a normal life.  Peter wants to hang out with his friends and smoke weed, Annie wants to continue to work on her miniatures, Charlie is just trying to stay unnoticed and focus on her artwork as a way of dealing with things.  Steve is just trying to hold everything together, until Peter goes to a party with his sister.  I’m not going to go further into the story and plot details, because that would be venturing into spoiler territory.  It’s a great story, but for me, it’s one that really hits close to home.  This is a movie about a family that’s struggling to come to terms with grief after dealing with so much tragedy.  The themes in this film show how grief can actually tear a family apart instead of bringing them together.  When you’re dealing with so much tragedy in such a short span of time, it can be very damaging emotionally as well as physically.  The film also shows how some of this suffering can be passed down from generation to generation.  There are supernatural elements that enter the picture after a certain point that don’t actually feel out of place, but I’ll discuss those elements later.

Let’s discuss the acting first.  Hereditary is one of the most well-acted horror films I’ve ever seen.  Everyone in this film does a fantastic job.  It’s a very risky thing when you put children into a film like this, because you have no idea how they are going to react to certain things.  Thankfully, the two youngsters that are in this film do a great job.  Milli Shapiro as Charlie is simply amazing.  This is her first movie and for somebody her age, it would have been very easy to see her go overboard.  Not so with little Milli.  She actually manages to keep her performance very low-key and powerful, even with very little dialogue.  A lot of her acting can be seen in her face and her eyes.  While you can clearly sympathize with the character due to her…issues, you also can’t help but think that there’s something not entirely right with the girl.  Milli just knocks it out of the park.  Alex Wolff as Peter is incredible.  How his character reacts to certain situations, Peter brings to life in some of the most realistic ways possible.  While Gabriel Byrne isn’t given a ton to do, he still manages to ground everything in a fairly logical way and is just trying to keep his family from falling apart.  Gabriel Byrne is one of those actors that is absolutely incredible to watch.  The real star of the show, though is Toni Collette as Annie.  This is one of the greatest performances in a horror movie, period.  Toni is tasked with so much, not just physically, but emotionally as well.  Her character is trying to keep it together, but as events unfold, we begin to see Annie to start losing control, and Toni puts everything into the role.  It’s heartbreaking and terrifying at the same time, given the things that she goes through.

Fear, like humor, is a very subjective thing.  What one person finds scary, another doesn’t.  Is Hereditary going to scare everybody?  No.  No, it’s not.  It didn’t scare me, per se.  What it did do, and the best horror films should always try to do this, is get under my skin.  There’s a lot of disturbing imagery in this film, and there is a scene about 30 minutes in that changes things considerably.  Anybody who has seen this film will know which scene I’m talking about.  It left me surprisingly shocked.  There are certain supernatural elements that do enter the picture at some point that make the film take a much darker turn.  It was dark enough already, but these events really make things a lot more tense.  There are moments where you’ll see something out of the corner of your eye, and like the characters, you try to focus on that particular image.  It’s that kind of film-making that really adds to the tension and atmosphere.  This is Ari Aster’s first full-length movie as a director, but it doesn’t feel like it, that’s how good he is and I can’t wait to see what else he’s got coming up.

When I said that this movie hits pretty close to home, I meant it.  As someone who has dealt with a lot of tragedy in the span of a few short months, I can definitely relate to the characters in this film.  There is a point at which you think you’re going insane.  You don’t want to believe that this stuff happened.  I’m still struggling a bit with what’s happened over the past few months, so that’s one of the reasons why Hereditary got under my skin.  Was it a good idea to watch this movie even while dealing with everything that I’ve been dealing with?  I think it was necessary.  I was and kind of still am in a bit of an emotionally vulnerable spot, so the film affected me more than most films of this type.  Even though the film is very dark and fraught with tragedy, in some ways it’s actually been fairly helpful in helping me confront the grief that’s still affecting me.  Is everybody going to have the same reaction that I did to the film?  No.  Some people are going to hate it, while others are going to be rather indifferent, and that’s okay.  It’s not a movie for everyone.  I appreciate the film because it has the audacity to make things personal.  By making a horror film personal, you are speaking to a particular group of people on that level and that can be far more effective than simple jump scares.  That is what I feel that Hereditary did, and I’m absolutely grateful for having seen it.

My Final Recommendation: 9.5/10.