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StanleyHebert
Reviews
Penny Dreadful (2005)
Dreadful? Not at all!
Penny Dreadful
This movie is a real hoot. first off, there seems to be a few folks out there with sour grapes about this film- probably the people who keep losing to it on the festival circuit. There is no way you can say this film isn't well done.
i've seen it twice and I'm still gonna buy the DVD. It's scary in all the right places and has a wicked sense of humor that is refreshingly not all "wink wink" (depsite the appearances of horror folks like Betsy Palmer) like we get nowadays.
The finale hits hard because the film suddenly gets very bloody and has a sick shotgun to the face scene that made the audience scream out loud followed by a whopper twist. Definitely an excellent little film to watch out for.
The Shining (1980)
come on people!
The Shining has always been overlong, boring pretentious and very flawed. It was not "misunderstood" by its audience in 1980 or "ahead of it's time." Please think for yourselves!!! The movie was justifiably nominated for all those Razzies because it deserved them! Just because Kubrick directed doesnt mean it's automatically good! Jack is drunk with a limp- he really poses no threat! Walk past him, for chrissake
Pigeonholed (1999)
Yikes!
Angst....boo hoo. It's like the filmmaker's had IDEAS of what emotions are like by watching other movies and not understanding them at all.
The audience can't believe a word of it. Synthetic, saccharine, and pompous. Way overly stylized, to boot. Even the music is pretentious and obvious. Some usually good actors are wasted here. "Pigeonholed", I have learned, is the reason why features films aren't allowed at NYU film school anymore for thesis projects.
Tomorrow's Bacon (2001)
More than meets the eye
Tomorrow's Bacon is good little mystery/thriller that you could possibly call in the same vein as a really strong 'Twilight Zone' or 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episode. The four characters (two couples) are surprisingly well drawn considering the length of the film and the minimal dialogue. Everything suggests to us that these characters inhabit a world at night, a world away from the life they live in the day. The setting and year the film is set is also totally ambiguous, which is a real plus. I totally picked up on the 'pig' theme. As the film moves closer and closer to the climax, there is some eerie tension. You sort of have no idea where the film is going, but then that last shot...looking back, it makes sense and almost seems inevitable. See it twice and you'll know what I mean. Good music score too