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Reviews
Diary of the Dead (2007)
Romero is a God!
I attended a special midnight screening of George Romero's newest zombie masterpiece and after thinking about it for a bit I am ready to give my thoughts.
The film starts off in a rather satiric manner with a group of college students from University of Pittsburgh shooting a low budget horror film. Director Jason Creed (Joshua Close) is annoyed at his monster's performance, complaining that he's moving too quickly. Dead things move slowly, you see.
As the cast takes a break, we hear news footage about the zombie outbreak. Of course the media offers no real explanation of what is going on, but our heroes figure out pretty quickly that something is horribly awry.
The film follows this little group as they try to make their way to their respective homes across Pennsylvania in a Winnebago. The action is seen through the camera lense of Jason, who really wants to be a documentary filmmaker.
Now I know many of you are thinking, "oh man, not another first person shooter horror film". Blair Witch, The Final Broadcast, Cloverfield, et al. It's not like we haven't seen this gimmick before. I've heard many people have tantrums over the fact that Romero went there for this film. I have to admit that I had some doubts going in.
That being said, this movie is really worth seeing. Romero adds a few twists to the first person shooter trick that make this work. First of all, there are TWO cameras. So you have different angles of the same thing going on at the same time. And as if to answer the question most viewers will ask (why the hell don't you put the down the ^%$#$& camera?), Romero explains WHY Jason doesn't put down the camera in a way that is very believable. The other characters in the film actually ask Jason that very question throughout the film, and while he does answer their questions with validity it does come back to bite him the butt (quite literally).
This is basically a re-imagining of Night of the Living Dead. Romero has taken the concept, which is a small group of survivors trying to get through the nightmare, and set it in the modern day with all the technology we use everyday. As the film opens, we hear a voice over by a survivor (Michelle Morgan). She explains that the footage was edited and uploaded to the internet so that people might know the truth about what is happening. The popular media has been spinning the events to keep every one docile, but there are endless hours of footage available on myspace, youtube and other services that were shot by survivors. One man at the screening felt the narration by this character was unnecessary and perhaps a bit distracting, but I disagree. I feel it gives a context and humanity to the events that are unfolding.
Like all Romero zombie films, this one is chock full of social commentary and observation. Too much, in fact, for me to really lay it all out for you in this review.
The cast is pretty generic on the whole. All the archetypes you expect in a film of this genre. There are a few stand out performances, however.
Scott Wentworth as the drunken media professor is the most memorable character in the entire film, second only to an all too brief appearance by an unknown extra as an amish man the group encounters during their travels. The professor is much more than he seems at first, and as the film progresses he becomes very endearing. It is his wisdom that keeps this motley band moving forward.
Ridley (Philip Riccio), one of the group who decides to abandon them early on to take refuge in his wealthy family's Philadelphia home, is brilliant. I can't say too much about his character without giving away important plot points of the film, but he is also a memorable character and plays his part to perfection.
I would also like to mention Amy Ciupak Lalonde, who plays a student from Texas. She's awesome, folks. Just brilliant. She is the voice of reason, saying all the things the audience will be screaming at the screen.
There are some brilliant cameos as well. Simon Pegg , Stephen King, Guillermo del Toro, Quentin Tarantino, Wes Craven, and others make voice-over appearances. Romero himself makes an on-screen appearance as well.
This was a fully independent production, made with no backing of any major studio. The special effects are done by a group called Gaslight and they are brilliant! There are some wonderful kills in this film. The zombies are not seen very much in the film, which helps keep the focus on the main characters. Every kill is a primary kill. There are no secondary, background zombie kills or any shortcuts taken. I wish I could say more without ruining the surprise. But for those who know what it means, Greg Nicotero had a hand in some of the effects also.
The music is minimal, which helps add to the realism of the film.
On the whole, I say give this film a chance. I know we've all had just about enough of the FPS thing, but I feel Romero got it right this time. He answers all our questions, and even pokes a little fun at himself and the genre on the whole. This is everything a zombie film should be: tongue-in-cheek satire placing a mirror on society and forcing us to re-consider everything we thought we understood about what it means to be human.
Remember: FAST ZOMBIES SUCK!
The Mist (2007)
Stephen King finally done right!!!!
First off, we all know that King never translates well to film. We've seen one disaster after another as his stories fail to impress us in the cinema. Well, this changes that trend, at least for me.
For those of you familiar with the original novella, right away you will be annoyed by how quickly you are rushed through the set up for the story and characters. it's like being taken by the arm and ushered through. However, that is only the first twenty minutes. Once past the establishing exposition, the film settles down into a reasonable pace.
David Drayton (Thomas Jane), after surviving a devastating freak storm with his family, surveys the damage on his homestead. Almost casually his attention is drawn to a strange mist on the river by his home. His neighbor Brent Norton (Andre Braughter) has neglected a large diseased tree which in the aftermath of the storm has crashed through the front window of Drayton's home. Drayton and Norton have a history of animosity that includes an unspecified lawsuit that Drayton won. Not wanting to make more problems, Drayton confronts his neighbor civilly, asking for his insurance information. In an attempt to keep good blood Drayton and his young son Billy (Nathan Gamble) take Norton into town to buy supplies.
The local grocery is packed and they have no power. As Drayton and his son wait in line, a local man runs into the shop covered in blood screaming about monsters in the mist.
So it begins. The film centers on the patrons trapped in the shop. The characters are fascinating, and very well played. Special attention should be paid to the obligatory religious nutcase Mrs. Carmody, played with hate-inducing vigor by Marcia Gay Harden. Also, to shopkeeper Ollie played by Toby Jones. His is a staple King character: the unassuming little man no one really thought much about who proves the greatest hero and the strongest spirit of all of them. Jones really seems to understand this character and his performance is a stand-out of the cast. My personal favorite character is Hattie played by Susuan Malerstein. From what i have gathered, this is her first trip in front of the camera. She plays a wonderful, feisty grandma (another King staple) trapped in the shop and ultimately fights the monsters right next to the best of them.
The special effects were handled by KNB, Greg Nicotero's company and as always he does not disappoint. A combination of practical and CGI effects give us the "monsters in the mist". I saw very few seams in the CGI and blue screen, and the ones I did see were very hard to notice. I only saw them because I'm a nerd and I look for them.
The film has a different ending from the novella, played through from the original ending. It makes sense as a natural progression from where King left off in the original story.
Most of the camera work is hand held which adds to the realism. It is almost a documentary, cinema verite if you will and pulls you into the story. The characters are a little flat, like in many films of this genre, but yet you sympathize with them.
The soundtrack is non-existent. The majority of the film plays out without any music at all, adding to the realism. What music is in the film is used sparingly, including an inspired choice of a track from the goth/emo band Dead Can Dance.
Overall, and without giving too much away, I highly recommend this film. I can't say enough how much i enjoyed it, or how this is the best Stephen King adaption I've seen since Carrie.
you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll kiss 10 bucks goodbye and want to see it again
Chainsaw Sally (2004)
grrls rock
I've been waiting for a while to see this film. When I finally did, I was not disappointed. There's nothing that gives a horror film flavor like an angry girl with a chainsaw! The social commentary of the film,a young girl left to her own defenses by the violent death of her family, is not necessarily new. But normally we get a prostitute, or a single mother, or some other Lifetime movie channel crap. In this case,we get a girl on a rampage, who in her own twisted way believes she is doing a service to humanity by taking out the "undesirable elements".There is something cathartic about the scene in the car, when she chops off the (you know) of a womanizing redneck to teach him a lesson and sticks a sparkler in the wound where it used to be. "You wanted fireworks, baby?" I am glad to finally see a female "villain" in a film that is something more than a foolish stereotype. I'll admit that, for my taste, the gore is lacking. But what you do see is well done, well executed (no pun intended), and does not go over the top in ridiculousness. Watching the movie, you find you like Sally. You empathize with her. You want her to win. And she does.The supporting characters are a treat as well. I love the cross-dressing brother. There is something so Rocky Horror or Phantom of the Paradise about him. He doesn't go over the top. He does not"flame on" to a point where you don't believe in him. And the best part is, he's the enabler (if not one of the reasons) of her mission to take out the perceived evil of society. The real villains of the film, the greedy land developer and his nymphomaniac assistant, are flat characters. But it does not take much to want them dead. And our girl delivers in a big way.And of course, we have our hapless hero. The poor sap caught in the middle of the whole thing who has no clue what's going on. He never gets a chance to work it out for himself. This is a role normally reserved for females. There is an air of unrequited love. Maybe this guy could save poor Sally from this life of destruction and murder.Then again..maybe she does not need saving. She's perfectly happy where she is and with what she's doing.if you get a chance, see this movie! You'll thank me for it....
Rock & Rule (1983)
This movie rocks!
This movie is the best ever! I discovered this movie when I was a kid.It's all the glam-rock/punk/seedy-music-guy/Lou Reed/Iggy Pop/DavidBowie wanna be/post apocalyptic/small town boy makes good that you can eat!!!! The soundtrack (performed by Blondie, Cheap Trick, Earth Windand Fire, and an assortment of relatively unknown artists) is just mindblowing. The animation (yes, I said animation..this is a @#$!^*&$@!cartoon) is unbelievable. All hand drawn cells, in the most incredible detail. Animation like this just isn't done anymore. Disney would be jealous!! It's been too many years since this movie was available for home viewing. If you only buy one DVD this year,buy this one. I assure you it's worth it!!
Tank Girl (1995)
Becky's my grrl
ok, first of all, the girl from sweden was WAY off. Ice-T does NOT play the boyfriend. Jeff Kober (Masquarade) is the actor who played Booga. Second, this movie i sooooo cool. I followed the comic for years. On screen they played all the great inside jokes, including the biggest one where Becky somehow changes clothes from one room to the next. This is a great film, especially for little girls. My friend's four year old daughter can't get enough of it. I could go into this whole "girl_power" trip right here, but that would be silly and stupid. In the end, this is a movie about self-enpowerment. Oh yea, responding to the post about the original ending and the edited footage....sadly, I feel that indeed that footage is probably lost forever. I got the dvd and none of it is on there. In theaters there was a great "love scene" between Becky and Booga that was removed. It was the funniest thing ever seen EVER. I geuss, though, it was too offensive.Maybe someday this footage will turn up. We can only hope.