Gallery of Fear is a 3 story plus wraparound horror anthology movie and it's not entirely terrible.
It tells the story of a nasty art critic who is forced to endure three tales of terror. The first involving a deadly curse, the second about a bullied teacher and his connection to a bizzare creature and finally the third is a good ol' psychotic rednecks type tale.
The trouble is the first story is considerably better than the rest, had it not been for that it wouldn't have gotten the rating it has.
The first story is quaint and original, the second has pacing issues but is just barely watchable and the third is the weakest yet deals with a subject close to the directors heart I'd imagine. The writer/director is transgender and is the lead in the third tale, dealing with bigotry and transphobia. It's quite uncomfortable viewing for that and other reasons.
I like horror anthologys but as I always say the film can only be as good as it's weakest story. When only of 1 of 4 is enjoyable it doesn't leave it much chance to really shine.
There is worse out there but a bit of additional creativity could have saved this from being distinctly average.
The Good:
The first story is great
I can appreciate the effort that went into it
The Bad:
Using the same cast for different characters
Poor sfx
Things I Learnt From This Movie:
A smoking ban is something I could entirely get behind
I suddenly want to go on a nick nack shop roadtrip
The deep south doesn't seem like a very safe place for anyone from the LGBT community
It tells the story of a nasty art critic who is forced to endure three tales of terror. The first involving a deadly curse, the second about a bullied teacher and his connection to a bizzare creature and finally the third is a good ol' psychotic rednecks type tale.
The trouble is the first story is considerably better than the rest, had it not been for that it wouldn't have gotten the rating it has.
The first story is quaint and original, the second has pacing issues but is just barely watchable and the third is the weakest yet deals with a subject close to the directors heart I'd imagine. The writer/director is transgender and is the lead in the third tale, dealing with bigotry and transphobia. It's quite uncomfortable viewing for that and other reasons.
I like horror anthologys but as I always say the film can only be as good as it's weakest story. When only of 1 of 4 is enjoyable it doesn't leave it much chance to really shine.
There is worse out there but a bit of additional creativity could have saved this from being distinctly average.
The Good:
The first story is great
I can appreciate the effort that went into it
The Bad:
Using the same cast for different characters
Poor sfx
Things I Learnt From This Movie:
A smoking ban is something I could entirely get behind
I suddenly want to go on a nick nack shop roadtrip
The deep south doesn't seem like a very safe place for anyone from the LGBT community