Alright lads, thanks for the recs, I am firing up Possessor tonight
Just seen Night Swim! 4/5, felt like a Stephen King book adapted for film. Simple idea well executed, the ridiculousness of āswimming pool that wants to kill youā could have tanked it but instead itās quite a tight, solid little film
Didnt expect I Know What You Did Last Summer to be so deathly dull
I have a mate whose favourite film is Inseminoid. He lives in a house made of old tyres in New Zealand now. Not sure if the two things are related.
Ooh! I always have a split second irrational fear of something invisible pulling me under and drowning me when Iām in a swimming pool. Going to have to check this out.
Respect that tbh, better than going into a landfill
I chatted to a mate in NZ over the Christmas break for the first time in 15 years. No idea if he likes Inseminoid. Pretty sure his house isnāt made of tyres.
Watched yesterday: Dario Argentoās Trauma. Most reviews of this begin by saying that this is frequently regarded as the point at which Argentoās artistic output started a downward spiral from which heās never really recovered. (See what I did there?). And sure, this isnāt a patch on films like Deep Red or Tenebrae but if you squint carefully enough, you might be able to make out a film that actually has quite a lot going for it. Our plot sees a killer, whose modus operandi consists of removing their victimās heads with a homemade decapitator, terrorizing Minneapolis. Asia Argento plays a 16 year-old Romanian girl who teams up with a local TV station worker to work out who the killer might be and what their motive is. This gets lambasted for a bunch of reasons: flat performances, a lack of gore, the fact that Minneapolis is a pretty shitty replacement for Turin, the list goes on. But personally none of this really bugged me. I thought Argentoās performance was fine ā she certainly throws herself into the role with an enthusiasm that helps gloss over any bumps in her acting. Piper Laurie plays her mum and is pretty amazing too, bringing serious Carrieās mum vibes to her performance. This is definitely latter-day Argento; the narrative does some ridiculously silly things and there are some choices here that are just baffling. But even Argentoās best work can throw up tonally inconsistent moments and if you like The Stendhal Syndrome, thereās not much here that out-sillys that film. Bottom-line: if you like Argento and are prepared to just forgive him when he makes bad choices and lap up the things that this does well, you might have a really fun time here. Itās definitely too long for its own good, but once the ending arrives, it really kicks things up a notch and the silliness becomes craziness of the best kind.
Watched a bit of The Strange Colour of Your Bodyās Tears last night but got interrupted and not sure Iāll go back. Reminded me of myself doing a film module at uni - always seemed to be some silly technique to distract from a lack of effort elsewhere! Should I keep going with it? Does it pay off in the end?! Iām usually well up for Lynchian surreal stuff, but Iām not convinced by this.
Is that the one set in an apartment block? All I remember of is is instantly forgetting it after watching, seemed very style over substance
Yeah, guy returns home to find wife missing, bangs on and on about being in telecommunications to anyone whoāll listen, and thenā¦you wonder what a million different editing styles is adding to any of it! Sounds like I should just cut my losses really. Is there anything good on Shudder I mightāve missed? Cancelling from the 14thā¦
so, I didnāt love nor dislike this one. It had me glued with suspense as to how it was going to play out. It was unsettling to see some of the characters killed but you realise it was necessary for the plot. Quite a few familiar faces from Black Mirror?
will check out another rec from this thread next.
I really enjoyed Perpetrator, if you like Lynchian surreal I think youāll like the atmosphere to that
thought Spoonful of Sugar was a really good original too
Ah cool, neither are on my radar so Iāll check them out!
The 2022 Crimes of the Future got a muted response here but I thought it was great. Good mix of the different paths it went across. Good stuff imo
Saw the Devilās Rain last night. An Anton LaVey consulted one by the guy who made films like Dr Phibes and starring Ida Lupino, John Travolta in his first role, William Shatner and a sometimes behorned Ernest Borgnine.
Its absolute nonsense but Iād be lying if I said I wasnāt entertained throughout. Actually has some nice effects and some genuinely creeping sounds as well, but all throughout I was laughing at how LaVey must have thought it was genuinely profound or something? Ridiculous but I wasnāt at all against it
Havenāt seen a film completely waste a premise like NIght Swim for quite some time. First 40 mins or so build up a nice suspenseful atmosphere and then the film completely takes the wrong direction and goes into supernatural bollocks. The creature looked like a turd. Rubbish
thiis not bad so far!
Saw Lord of Misrule earlier. A British folk horror starring Finchy directed by the guy who made Orphan First Kill. Bit of a frustrating one this. Think Wicker Man ruined folk horror really cause anything now seems a pale imitator. This has a couple of good ideas but its very explainy until the parts where it really should be a bit clearer. Never quite breaks out into madness like it should. Very mid film for me
Watched yesterday: Tigers Are Not Afraid. Been meaning to get to this ever since it first came out and it was well worth the wait. Iām guessing many here will have already seen this, but for the uninitiated, we have the story of Estrella, a young Mexican girl who finds herself obliged to join a group of homeless children when she returns home from school one day to discover that her mother has gone missing. A supernatural element is brought into the story when Estrella starts using the 3 wishes that were given to her by her teacher to try and alter the trajectory that her life is onā¦ I really liked this. The story itself is a fairly straightforward one of young lives being fucked up by the choices of corrupt adults and although the narrative is engaging, itās in the performances that this really shines. (On a side-note, I lived in Mexico for a little while and hearing the slangy insults that the young boys hurl at each other throughout was a delight and added a layer of authenticity that helped draw me in even more). Iām not 100% convinced that the film integrates the supernatural elements in a way that really works but that didnāt stop me from enjoying this a whole lot. Tears in my eyes by the end.