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Ghost Town: An American Terror (2023)
Surprisingly Engaging
This is a good film for a sleepless night. I found it on Amazon Prime at 2 AM today. It held my attention for the duration. Yes, it's low-budget, and yes, it's indie horror. I give it grades of A on both accounts. It defies noir conventions in nice ways, which kept me guessing even when I knew where the story was going. The acting and writing are actually good for this kind of film. The horror aspects are refreshingly creepy. No, it isn't going to keep you on the edge of your seat or make you scream. It's not that kind of ride. It will make your skin crawl and leave you questioning the value of human existence and pretty sure that most religion is malarky. It is worth seeing, and I for one will keep an eye on Owen Conway. He's got something here that is different enough from standard-fare indie horror to promise future good films, at least for insomniacs.
Post Mortem (2020)
surprisingly good
I watch a lot of horror movies, and it's rare that I see one with anything new to offer. This is an exception. Its cinematography alone is worth the viewing. The story builds slowly to an amazing crescendo. Without adding spoilers, it's difficult to describe. But know that the film's tempo draws the viewer deep into this stark post-World War I village nearly devoid of life. The living characters occupy a liminal space between their marginal lives and the land of the dead. The ghosts, and there are many of them, are complex and unpredictable. This is perhaps the best ghost story I have seen this decade. I recommend it highly.
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
film doesn't understand women
The movie doesn't understand its main character. This is clearly a masculinist interpretation of a remarkable woman's ingenuity. I could give many examples but will settle on her portrayal as one who bailed on all of her dream projects, such as singing, kung fu, cooking, and so on, and barely holds herself together for survival. What the hell? She had a family and a business to hold together. It is as though the movie blames her for life being difficult, and then is amazed when she pulls it together. Women do that every day. The film is far more sympathetic to the husband, so befuddled by the amazing women around him he wants to bail with a divorce. I read that this story was originally written for Jackie Chan, with a male lead. Maybe that would have worked because the writers clearly don't understand women. Watch it for the acting. Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis are both amazing and deserve their accolades. And yes, the cinematography, costumes, and other technical aspects are excellent.
Fractured (2019)
nightmare inducing
This is a seriously creepy film, and a good piece of artwork. The story draws you in, and you do not know where it's going. I won't spoil it. Know that it gave me nightmares. It will leave you praying it does not happen to you!
Wild Rose (2018)
Good but not that good
Jessie Buckley was very good, as were all the other players. I can't give the film the high accolades some reviewers have, though. The story just didn't hang together for me. For example, what is the real pivotal moment when the daughter decides to acknowledge her mother again? That and other things are not clear. And who would leave Scotland and fly to Nashville with absolutely no kind of plan what to do once they got there? There are other gaps in the story. The feel of the movie is good, and parts of the story feel genuine, but I didn't love it.
Gloria Bell (2018)
I wanted to rescue the main character from this film
This is the first and last Sebastian Lelio film for me. It is largely a monograph by a man who either hates women or has simply not learned anything at all about what motivates them. It brought back every song from the 1980s that I hated, and Moore's character comes across as a pathetic bar-hopping eighties dancing queen who never mentally left the era, and who trusts sleazy men too many times. The scenes where she is supposed to appear strong or feisty fall completely flat and are badly timed.
The Wild Angels (1966)
Nazi junk
When I saw this in 1966 as a very young teenager, I thought Peter Fonda was sexy and the motorcycles were exciting. The movie inspired me to ride motorcycles, and I owned several. I also grew up an learned about the horrors of Nazism. I read Hunter Thompson's book about the real Hell's Angels, who are not people that I admire at all. So, the film no longer works for me. It is interesting to see Cheryl Ladd as a bleached blonde, and also very young, and Nancy Sinatra is lovely. Otherwise, I wish Fonda and especially Bruce Dern had known better than to do this!
Colette (2018)
See it for Knightley and learn some history
Knightley is superb. She plays Colette sensitively and convincingly. The other actors in the film pale by comparison. That said, it is a good biopic that provides a window into a time often covered but seldom understood in film. As a historian, I recommend it highly.
Happy (1960)
What were WE thinking about?
I loved this show when I was seven years old. I remember it clearly. The novelty of a baby whose thoughts are vocalized was novel at that time. It came on before or after another show called Chatter, which was about a chimpanzee whose thoughts you could hear. The things we watched back in the day!
Candy (1968)
Watch it.
Following three months of dismal box office shows and Netflix deadwood I popped this into my Blu-Ray. I am so glad I did. Fifty years of artistic nonsense disappeared in a flash. Take a trip back to the days when art flourished in film, before sophistication and technology ruined it. It will leave you feeling fresh and clean.
Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále (2006)
Contains sensitive material for some viewers
This film, though technically good (lots of pretty and well choreographed scenes, beautiful women, and pretty good acting)is disturbing, and some people should probably avoid it. People who are overly sensitive to the horrors of Nazi brutality will probably find the film very offensive. That the main character is a savant oblivious to the dark side of the Third Reich does little to redeem the comedic value of the story. Also, nearly all of the women in the film are either prostitutes, Nazis or both. That was a problem for me. That said, the film makes some interesting and humorous comments about wealth and the value of money.
The Naked Kiss (1964)
must see for noir fans
This movie wrung buckets of emotion out of me. I saw Fuller's Shock Corridor several years ago, and it remains one of my favorite dramas. How Fuller knew and understood the darkest corners of the human mind, I do not know. I know only that, in his films, he shined a blinding spotlight on those corners without diminishing his subjects. Remarkale. I know of no other film maker who does that as well. Perhaps the best thing about this story is that the prostitute heroine, Kelly (Constance Towers), pulls her strength from those around her, as well as from her own powerful core. She helps and is helped by many people. All of the women in the film are fascinating. I plan to watch this one many more times to study them. Wow. Fuller's women are as interesting as Tennessee Williams' -- but, very different. This is a polished noir gem, although it came a bit late to qualify as classical film noir. The acting is superb -- not a single shabby performance. I admit that I was a bit skeptical that Anhony Eisley's character could do such a drastic moral about-face, but hey -- it's a great film, and a great story. It is a must-see for all noir fans and recommended for everyone over the age of 16.
Kansas City Confidential (1952)
great noir visuals
Film noir at its best. All of the positive comments by other reviewers are accurate regarding the acting, directing and appropriately flawed "noir tale" script. John Payne is a textbook noir guy -- just out of prison, tormented, misunderstood and kicked around by the cops (who do not come out smelling good in this story) and a terrible trio of criminals. Add to that extraordinary film noir visual effects. This is exemplary film noir. The framed-in, claustrophobic scenes actually made me short of breath. The scene on the boat at the end is classic, and probably the prototype for subsequent scenes in other movies and TV shows. It reminded me of the Sopranos episode where Tony & Co. killed Big Pussy. The robbers in their creepy masks were so interesting to study that I watched that part several times. It reminded me of Kabuki theater. A real box of candy for noir connoisseurs. I recommend it highly.
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)
ignore the naysayers and watch this -- it's good noir
Don't let the weird title of this underrated gem discourage you -- this is a very good film. The story is about four characters -- and all of them are sufficiently complicated to make the narrative more than a little interesting. Barbara Stanwyk's Martha Ivers is far more interesting than her notorious Phyllis Diedrickson in Double Indemnity. She married a man she did not love when she was very young, and although she grows into a wicked woman, you are able to sympathize with her a bit. Her husband, played by a young Kirk Douglas, is an equally trapped alcoholic weakling. He is the least sympathetic character. Van Heflin's Sam, who has seen and done it all, is good. However, the character that fascinated me most, and the one who has received the least commentary, is Lizabeth Scott's Toni Marachek. Scott has always reminded me a little of Tuesday Weld (Pretty Poison), and possibly even Sue Lyon (Lolita, Night of the Iguana). She is a hard-luck case juvenile delinquent, and possibly the strongest character in the film. She is the one who, in the end, is able to rise above it all, even though she is tempted to look back at the end (one is left to wonder what she was looking at). I do not want to spoil this gem for anyone who might watch it. It is more than satisfying as noir, great drama, and it will leave you feeling good about the world, even though there is clearly no room for certain kinds of people in it.
The Man Who Cheated Himself (1950)
Not really noir
This was a disappointing film for me. It came to me via a boxed set entitled, "Classic Film Noir," which was a gift from someone who knows I typically enjoy films done in that style (I insist that noir is a style, not a genre). I do not think it is a noir film at all. There seems to be a tendency these days to label and market every black and white B movie made from 1947 to 1955 as noir, and the label does not always fit. There is a persecuted male protagonist, Ed Cullen (Lee J. Cobb), and most of the film's action takes place indoors. Those are just about the only noir elements that I could see. There is no pervasive paranoia, or any real reason why one should sympathize with Ed Cullen. Jane Wyatt was overdressed and unconvincing as a femme fatale. I do not want to spoil this film for potential viewers. However, I would be interested in hearing what other connoisseurs of film noir have to say about it.
El orfanato (2007)
not "just another ghost story"
To a seasoned American horror fan like myself, the film lacks originality. At first I thought it was a Spanish remake of House on Haunted Hill (1959). The theme of a psychologically unbalanced woman tormented by the ghosts of abused, institutionalized children is hardly new. That said, the film is well worth seeing. It's setting in on the Spanish coast, and its distinctive European rhythm and flavor make the scary parts -- and there are some good ones -- quite delectable. Belen Rueda's acting alone is worth the price of a theater ticket. This is not a film for viewers who do not like or understand how to appreciate horror. Far more than "just another ghost story," this film will leave you jolting at bumps in the night. The tag line for William Castle's 1959 classic applies here ... "see it with someone with warm hands."