Greetings, salutations, and welcome to my consideration and recommendation of Open Graves.
Story: 1.25/2 - Direction and Pace: 2.75/4 - Performances: 1.25/2 - Enjoyment: 1.25/2
Total 6.50/10
If you're a fan of board gaming and horror, Open Graves is for you. I have to admit I liked the tale's concept, though I believe the game's backstory could've been better thought through. The Spanish Inquisition connection didn't work for me, especially when they revealed the game is supernatural. I believe they included it in the film, so they had a few torture scenes. The movie's climax was another letdown because the twist's too predictable. But the journey there isn't as terrible. The writers give the audience some believable individuals that are fleshed-out enough to keep them on the right side of boring and provide them with intriguing, creepy, and nasty situations. I especially loved the crab scene. When one gamer plummets off a cliff, he's unlucky enough to be alive after smashing into the rocks at its base. Though in immense pain, he's paralysed and broken. Then the crawling crustaceans arrive for their evening banquet. The director does a great job of making it a tense scene. But he could've heightened the shock effect more. When the crab pincers gamer-boy's eyeball, the cut is a tad slow, and the angle changes slightly, so you know they've swapped out the actor for a dummy head. Still, it works well; it just could've been tighter. The strange thing is that even though the opening inquisition scene and this one are well thought out and superbly captured. There are a few death sequences that get handled less well. A couple is over too quickly; it's as though the characters were second-rate and didn't rate a comprehensive death scene.
I admired the director's work; he utilises light perfectly. While the gang rolls their dice, every shot is in candlelight - soft and warm golden hues. This lighting effect should give the viewer a sense of relaxed calmness - that is why we light candles in the first place nowadays. But, in Open Graves, the director adds deeper shadows, adding an air of creepiness. The best yet is that he likes the audience to see everything. When gamer-boy topples off the cliff, it's nighttime. However, thanks to the light of the silvery moon, we witness his fatal downfall in gory detail. The one thing I thought could've been better was the picture's pacing. At times, it's a tad too slow for the scenes, and at others, it's too fast. It's varied, and that is brilliant. However, once again, it could've been a little tighter. The special effects, for the time, are pretty decent. I especially liked the Eliza Dushku dragonfly demon. The CGI team intentionally keeps the lighting dull because had it been any brighter, the flaws would've been easily visible.
The cast is wonderful. I loved the idea of keeping it multi-national, as this adds a tangible reality to the narrative of a group of friends. And everyone gives a steady performance of their character. Except for Gary Piquer as the detective. He's pretty average throughout the movie until we come to his pivotal moment, and then he comes across too strongly, which adds a campiness to the moment.
Open Graves is an entertaining waste of an hour and a half that I'd happily recommend to all horror lovers, as it has a bit of something for everyone: Eye gouging for the Gorehounds; a creepy atmosphere for the more refined; a decent story with credible characters for the folk who need a tale to satisfy them; Instant ageing and starvation for the SFX fans who love to ask, how did they do that(?); and for the shallow, there're the beautiful people within the cast.
Please check my Absolute Horror list to see where I ranked the movie.
Take Care, Stay Well, And Merry Christmas.
Story: 1.25/2 - Direction and Pace: 2.75/4 - Performances: 1.25/2 - Enjoyment: 1.25/2
Total 6.50/10
If you're a fan of board gaming and horror, Open Graves is for you. I have to admit I liked the tale's concept, though I believe the game's backstory could've been better thought through. The Spanish Inquisition connection didn't work for me, especially when they revealed the game is supernatural. I believe they included it in the film, so they had a few torture scenes. The movie's climax was another letdown because the twist's too predictable. But the journey there isn't as terrible. The writers give the audience some believable individuals that are fleshed-out enough to keep them on the right side of boring and provide them with intriguing, creepy, and nasty situations. I especially loved the crab scene. When one gamer plummets off a cliff, he's unlucky enough to be alive after smashing into the rocks at its base. Though in immense pain, he's paralysed and broken. Then the crawling crustaceans arrive for their evening banquet. The director does a great job of making it a tense scene. But he could've heightened the shock effect more. When the crab pincers gamer-boy's eyeball, the cut is a tad slow, and the angle changes slightly, so you know they've swapped out the actor for a dummy head. Still, it works well; it just could've been tighter. The strange thing is that even though the opening inquisition scene and this one are well thought out and superbly captured. There are a few death sequences that get handled less well. A couple is over too quickly; it's as though the characters were second-rate and didn't rate a comprehensive death scene.
I admired the director's work; he utilises light perfectly. While the gang rolls their dice, every shot is in candlelight - soft and warm golden hues. This lighting effect should give the viewer a sense of relaxed calmness - that is why we light candles in the first place nowadays. But, in Open Graves, the director adds deeper shadows, adding an air of creepiness. The best yet is that he likes the audience to see everything. When gamer-boy topples off the cliff, it's nighttime. However, thanks to the light of the silvery moon, we witness his fatal downfall in gory detail. The one thing I thought could've been better was the picture's pacing. At times, it's a tad too slow for the scenes, and at others, it's too fast. It's varied, and that is brilliant. However, once again, it could've been a little tighter. The special effects, for the time, are pretty decent. I especially liked the Eliza Dushku dragonfly demon. The CGI team intentionally keeps the lighting dull because had it been any brighter, the flaws would've been easily visible.
The cast is wonderful. I loved the idea of keeping it multi-national, as this adds a tangible reality to the narrative of a group of friends. And everyone gives a steady performance of their character. Except for Gary Piquer as the detective. He's pretty average throughout the movie until we come to his pivotal moment, and then he comes across too strongly, which adds a campiness to the moment.
Open Graves is an entertaining waste of an hour and a half that I'd happily recommend to all horror lovers, as it has a bit of something for everyone: Eye gouging for the Gorehounds; a creepy atmosphere for the more refined; a decent story with credible characters for the folk who need a tale to satisfy them; Instant ageing and starvation for the SFX fans who love to ask, how did they do that(?); and for the shallow, there're the beautiful people within the cast.
Please check my Absolute Horror list to see where I ranked the movie.
Take Care, Stay Well, And Merry Christmas.