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An error has ocurred. Please try againHave added medical pandemic and behavioural changes type stuff bc they're so similar to and some form or parallel to zombism is often what results.
Reviews
Darling (2015)
Not your average jump scares!
I'm no film critic, but I like what I like, and sometimes not knowing the technical stuff might actually makes some things more enjoyable...
This film is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL. All through it I wondered over if the director had to be some kind of insane level micro-managing visionist because every. Single. Shot. Is. Perfection. From the wickedly crisp and clear focus, timeless, beautiful costumes and furniture, to where reflections appear or...is the door really THAT crooked, or is maybe the hallway a little off-kilter, too? It's amazing, and that's without even mentioning the opening landscapes of NYC, each of which I want to blow up to wall size and hang everywhere. (I've never been there and am not even American, so that would be weird. I guess.)
While the visuals are gorgeous, they're also unsettling. I've seen others call it "claustrophobic", so let's go with that. That claustrophobic feeling is enhanced greatly by the creative and unnerving use of sound. There's the ticking of a clock that's just too loud for a typical background noise, and the sound that comes out of a woman's mouth isn't a voice, or scream...is it...an alarm clock? A fire alarm? Doesn't matter. It got my attention and freaked me out without bringing emotion into it (screams are emotional!). Brilliant. This sort of soundplay occurs throughout the film in very jarring ways and provides more than one jump scare that gives you that uncomfortable, unfinished feeling, like when you accidentally swallow something too soon. You're left with that weird, lingering unsatisfied feeling that isn't exactly painful, but definitely lingers too long. I don't even know if they can be called jump scares because they have none of the build-ups that trademark the expectation - music, slowed movements, overdue pregnant pauses - it's all in the entirely unexpected sounds and images, none of which are particularly scaring in the singular!
There is some violence, and while I really think there was far less blood than there should have been, the act itself felt so visceral and shocking...
I love horror movies, and the gorier, the better. But this was done in a wide shot where the entire room and people could be seen. No closeups. No jumpcuts to meticulously sculpted gore props. The whole thing happens right there, crisp as can be, in full view. I jumped more than once during this scene!
This was a scary movie that scared me and also called, then raised my inner "I've-seen-it-all" sicko WITHOUT showing anything I wouldn't watch with my mother!
It also left me with questions, but mostly the good ones, very comparable to the classic: Just what exactly WAS in Marcellus Wallace's briefcase?
Because in the long run, not knowing is more fun, speculating with others makes it even better, and whenever you're reminded of that movie, you'll wonder again!
9/10 because I was engaged throughout, scared sometimes, with one star loss for being stingy with the corn syrup, especially since the food colouring wouldn't be needed in b&w.