Among Friends (2012)

It's amazing how our minds can take a few details and fill in the blanks to create our own facts. Judging by the varied reviews from multiple sources (IMDB, Netflix, various blog, and so on), I wasn't the only one who suffered from flawed expectations, but, going against my own inclination to turn the movie off, I seem to be one of the few naysayers who watched the whole movie. And, admittedly, I was ready to write the movie off as an embarrassing failure for first-time director and beloved horror icon Danielle Harris. But something just didn't seem right with my assessment. I felt as though I had missed something, like everyone was in on a joke except me. So, I sought out the special features where, sure enough, there was an option for director commentary. If not for rewatching the film with commentary, this would've been a scathing review.

The Collection (2012)

Every once in a while a movie comes around that takes audiences by surprise.

This is not one of them.

The Loved Ones (2009)

Typically I patiently await my Netflix rentals, no matter if they actually ship on time or if they go into the limbo of short-wait, long-wait, unavailable, or otherwise unknown release/ship date.  But when it comes to movies from the Outback (or from France) I can't wait.  They have simply been too good for me to pass up.  So, as soon as I saw that The Loved Ones indeed did not ship the day before its projected release, I promptly removed it from my queue altogether and secured a rental at the local grocery through Redbox.  Again, something I rarely feel compelled to do, especially when I know the genre is in the torture vein--something I don't care that much for, no matter how well done.  All this to say, my expectations were high, and by the time I got the movie started I silently demanded it to deliver.

And boy did it deliver!  From Lake Mungo to The Clinic to The Loved Ones, these Aussies know how to make a movie!  Everything is evenly balanced: pacing, lighting, thrills, character chemistry, backstory, and so on.  Going into it, I knew the basic plot: an obsessed woman kidnaps her prom date and tortures him like crazy.  And, well, this is mostly true, though if you want to quibble in semantics it's not technically what happens.  Which is nice, because as soon as the action begins (and it begins fairly early) there's a nice little twist on the presumed plot.  But then I saw the running time was pretty early in the film, and I worried that it would degrade into trashy, mindless torture for the duration.  And while it pretty much does deliver a lot of trashy torture, the movie swings back and forth from setting to setting, all in linear time, to show how his (the captive's) mother and girlfriend are coping with the disappearance; his hilariously awkward buddy and his goth prom date; and a police officer who is put on the case to find him.  All of the performances are strong enough to keep the film alive and entertaining.

Speaking of his hilariously awkward buddy and his goth prom date, this film dishes out black humor from start to finish.  The first glimpse of the tone this film would take while delivering its vicious torture sequences was when the captor stops by a chicken place to pickup dinner!  I figured this would be a one-off little gag, but it is the first of a series of hilarious moments of black humor that I want to watch again and again, making this not only a great film to watch alone; but also a great film to watch with a group.

Now, let's talk about our antagonist, Lola (played by Robin McLeavy).  Wow.  What a performance.  She is twisted, evil, relentless--yet brilliant, perfect, and mesmerizing.  I always welcome a gender twist on this genre, and I believe this might be the best performance I've seen to date.  McLeavy's first couple appearances on-screen are nothing if not cliché, so again I worried that this film would fall into the pit of dross with countless other films.  On the contrary, Lola shines as many different personalities.  At first, you think she's a little girl trapped in a woman's body, depending on her daddy to make her dreams come true--so, a sort of shy innocence that will endure throughout the film.  But you quickly find that she has a commanding, aggressive, violent bent, in addition to some illicit father-daughter propensities.  To sum it up, this is one evil femme fatale who stands apart from all others I've seen (on-screen and in real life).

So, as if it weren't enough for me to hear two clips of Parkway Drive's music a couple times, The Loved Ones pays strong homages to a classic of modern horror, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.  In the end, I was thoroughly entertained and walked away with a great cinematic experience.  If you even remotely enjoy the torture genre (and no, this is not torture-porn), you're going to welcome The Loved Ones with open arms.  If you like horror movies in general and you're interested to see what these Aussie's have done with a genre that is running out of gas, you're going to be thrilled with this film.  And if you're worried that this is another take on remaking Prom Night, put it out of your mind--only about 3 minutes of the film take place within the venue of the prom (the goings on just outside, however, are utilized aplenty and are more than welcome).  Here's to yet another treat from the land down under!

Rating: 4/5

Bereavement (2010)

This year I'm doing everything I can to stay on top of all the DVD releases so as to increase my selection for my end-of-year top ten picks. Not sure how I came across Bereavement, but after watching it I found that it is actually the prequel to a 2004 release entitled Malevolence, also helmed by Stevan Mena. So I'll be watching Mena's films in chronological order at least. The plot isn't as interesting as I'd hoped (perhaps watching Malevolence first would've changed that), but the production value was high enough to enjoy the film despite it surpassing the standard 90-minute mark. The acting was decent throughout with superb screaming that conveyed pure dread. Alexandra Daddario carried the weight of her heroine role deftly, even in the face of parodic family drama. So, all in all, worth a watch if you're not expecting too much. Also, bonus points for nods at Halloween.

Saw: The Final Chapter (2010)

Rating: D+
Experience Vitals: Netflix DVD.

I'm typically a bit forgiving with the Saw franchise because, argue if you will, it's been a pretty solid long-running franchise. Watch the first seven offerings of either Friday the 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street and I think it would be clear that the Saw films have remained comparatively strong. (Here come the pivotal conjunction!) But, that being said, this finale is not only an ultimate flop but a decidedly strange flop.

Halfway through the opening sequence, I assumed it had to be a dream, but, no, it wasn't; and it became clear that the movie intended it to be real and not a device of trickery toward a dreamlike intimations either. Of course, one has to keep in mind that this is another movie made for 3D (which explains the blood-splattered opening credits and various in-your-face elements), but the polished, almost fantastic opening scene didn't fit with the rest of the movie or the entire franchise's modus operandi for that matter. Maybe I missed something, but this opener seemed like more of the recent stock of thrills for the sake of thrills, especially found in 3D movies (I'm thinking of the Final Destination finale, for example).

From there the movie is just bananas. It reminds me of a postmodernism novel where the structure is a plot assembled around a pastiche of events related and/or unrelated events, which, I mean, no problem. I can deal with that, but it has to be done well. Saw VII feels largely unorganized, and I think the filmmakers were hoping to chalk it up to nascent instability and thus more frenetic and hastier than usual. Fine, but these traps were far more aggrandized than previous traps. Tedious, intricate traps, requiring time and precision, and certainly more than a single person, given the miraculous amount of time in which the traps are staged--not to mention the number of people involved. One thing I did like--though it was given away way too early--was the Ocean's 11-style infiltration of the holding cell toward the end. And other similar stunts lent the filmmakers some credibility for thinking beyond 3D-centric goodies.

As for the trademark Saw twist, this one is a reach but I do think it ultimately works. As usual, they reach back into a previous installment and grope for a character to revive (I don't feel this is giving anything away at this point). And it's easy to question how Jigsaw juggled all of these associates, but, then again, the franchise has done an excellent job of reasserting Jigsaw's prowess and intellect, so, yeah, I think it works. is it mind-bending? No. Does it wrap up the franchise well? Cyclically, maybe, but above all, this is a thin, sloppy finale.

The Lodge (2008)

Rating: D
Experience Vitals: Netflix DVD rental watched at 0130 instead of being in bed, resting up for a full day at work; on favorite chair, munching on honey roasted peanuts and drinking Coke that is supposedly vanilla flavored.

There is another movie that started this way. I watched it recently, and I think it was Babysitter Wanted. The grim opening scene depicts a striking young girl who is bound and being tortured, only to be followed with roughly 85 minutes of mediocrity and pinholes of promise (Babysitter Wanted had the potential to be great, but it took a nosedive after the reveal). With the mystery unveiled at the beginning (The Lodge is not a red-herring type movie), the filmmaker has created the challenge of maintaining any level of suspense without deviating from the most conventional "camping misadventure" formula (which typically means supernatural elements or big-time shockers that connect the good and bad characters in some way one or both did not know). Unfortunately, The Lodge is content with staying mediocre, unlike The Farmhouse, where we know these people aren't right from the beginning but the movie steadily increases the viewer's uneasiness. So what were the pinholes of promise? In this one, I believe a lot could have been done with the jealousy and tension between the character triangle. The movie could have taken a very deeply psychological approach. If you can stay awake through all of the mundane chases through the house (the only set location, which doesn't have to be a mistake) you'll catch the ridiculous final frame.

Saw VI (2009)

Rating: B
To be a sixth installment, this wasn't bad. Visually stimulating throughout and laden with current events (e.g. healthcare reform, loan defaulting, etc.), which I found to be quite amusing. I also got my wish after drowning in the exposition of Saw V: VI does contain flashbacks and plot-thickening, but not as exhaustively. The only real fault I found was in the movie's twist-per-scene structure, especially toward the end (of course). It's as if the filmmakers decided, Okay, everyone loves Saw because of the cool twist at the end of the first one, so we'll just add as many twists as we can and hope one triggers that same awe. Well, unfortunately, the "twists" get old. Unless you have a structure to support a twist-per-scene, e.g. Memento, the "twists" will become tiresome.

Penance (2009)

The year is almost over, and I'm frantically trying to watch as many 2009 releases as possible in order to produce a top-picks list. Unfortunately, some releases don't hit DVD until January (H2, Pandorum, The Final Destination, Saw VI) or February (The Stepfather, Zombieland), so I may release a revised 2009 top-picks list a tad later in 2010. Next week is the last week I will watch 2009 releases before compiling my list, but I don't have high hopes for movies like Jennifer's Body.

I'm not exactly sure how I came across this film--an ad on the Video ETA web site, I think--but it wasn't as bad as I expected, both in quality and in gruesomeness, which it was made out to be jam-packed with. It was dark and depressing (as torture/exploitation films tend to be), but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be...save for two highly disturbing scenes. I've never been nauseous watching movies, unless of course the camerawork is far too helter skelter (e.g. Cloverfield, The Blair Witch Project), but there were two scenes in Penance that left my head swimming. One scene in particular went where Jack Ketchum wasn't willing to go in his book, The Girl Next Door.

I don't have a whole lot to say about this one. It's a gritty portrayal of defilement. Movies like Hostel popped into my head as I watched it, but it isn't quite in the same vein. Penance has a tone and atmosphere of its own, and that atmosphere is dark. By the time it was over I wanted to watch cartoons, the Food Network, HGTV, anything to get the movie out of my head (though I ended up watching District 9, Thirst, and Inglourious Basterds the next night, instead). But, as I said, it's not a bad movie. It is not poorly made. Penance is another unique offering in the line of recent cinéma vérité films, but far from the top of the list.

Saw V (2008)

Although I "saw" it (sorry) in the theater last year, Saw V has the dubious honor of being the first movie I've seen on Blu-ray; and I have to say, the pristine quality Blu-ray boasts definitely enhances the movie-watching experience. The superior video quality emphasizes minor details, such as rust on a pipe, rainfall, and splintered wood, giving the movie a more realistic feel overall. But enough advocating a technology everyone except for me has already experienced! Here's what I think of this fifth installment in the Saw franchise.

We finally get to see what would've happened to our narrator in Poe's "The Pit and the Pendulum" had he not had the ingenuity to coerce the rats into eating through his constraints. This opening scene gives Saw fans what they want: an elaborately planned torture mechanism that results in a gruesome, tense death. Yet, there is also a little twist that tips us off to the fact that this is not Jigsaw. So, the checklist for the beginning of a good torture movie is complete. Our tastes for graphic blood and guts are satiated, and we get a nice little hook. And in Blu-ray, the blood and guts are beautifully rendered!

But, unfortunately, Saw V transitions from a brutal opening torture scene to a long, exhausting exposition that revisits each of the previous movies. The effect is far from entertaining. Instead, the constant flashbacks and "clever" twists, intermingled with a linear storyline concerning a group of throwaway characters who all have something in common (bad acting!), loses its appeal and my attention. On top of all the effort spent on plot-thickening, we get short soliloquies by Agent Strahm just in case we, the audience, are too dense to deduct the meaning of the flashbacks. Thanks for the insult.

I don't want to waste my time griping about bad acting--the first Saw movie, which is still my favorite, exhibited some of the worst acting I've ever seen in recent horror film. But I will say that this movie used the tried-and-true solution for excusing terrible acting. The excuse we get for the character whom I consider the worse actor in the movie is that he is a drug addict. Bravo! Got a bad actor or actress, whom you don't want to cut from the film? No problem. Just pawn the inept acting off on drug use or mental deterioration (see my recent remarks on Deadline).

As the flashback/twist-development monotony transitioned into the final scene, I was hopeful for a strong ending to compliment the strong opening. In comparison, however, the movie definitely moved away from cringe-eliciting gore. The cracked ulna (or radius?) is great, but it's nothing compared to the evisceration we get in the beginning. A major disappointment after waiting through the preceding seventy minutes or so. Oh! Wait! It just hit me that there was a nice little gag thrown in when ten pints of blood were required of our captives. Still, it was too late in the movie for me; I was already bored. (Man, have I acquired a pronounced addition to torture or what?)

Now don't get me wrong. I have thoroughly enjoyed the Saw franchise, but this installment was a trifle too anticlimactic for my tastes. I'm hopeful that, since Saw V spent so much time thickening the plot of the entire franchise, Saw VI will be much better (i.e. pure thrills and a single, solid twist; Saw's trademark). Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to see VI in the theater back in October (as I've done with the previous five movies), so I anxiously await its January 26th release.

House of 1,000 Corpses (2002)

When I received The Devil's Rejects a few weeks ago from Netflix, it dawned on me that I hadn't seen the prequel, House of 1,000 Corpses. I was told that it didn't really matter whether I had seen the first installment or not, but I decided to be a loyal movie patron and watch them in order. And this, despite having read a hundred blog posts favoring the second installment over the first.

Two things dawned on me in the first 15 minutes: (1) making a batch of Buffalo chicken wings for the movie was a bad idea, and (2) I had already seen the movie. Now, I'm not one to forget what I've seen and what I haven't. I have friends who constantly get halfway through a movie only to then realize, Oh, I've seen this before! But, like I said, this has never happened to me before. How it happened now, I don't know; but after 15 minutes it all came back to me, and I remembered every bit of it.

I almost turned it off, but decided to watch it again to see how it measured up for me years later. It was about the same as I remember it being: sick, twisted, and somehow tame. It seemed like all of the "disturbing" parts were purposely shot with a distorted, grainy wash, which for me took away from the movie in the same way that the other visual editing effects did. With the exception of The Wall, I've never seen visual effects (e.g. hue, saturation, etc.) I liked. (Is The Wall even considered a movie?) The movie redeemed itself, however, by being thoroughly laced with humor.

Looking forward to The Devil's Rejects! I hope it has the same sense of humor and loses the distracting visual transitions.

Mum & Dad (2008)

A bizarre, twisted, grim British horror film that left me puzzled. I just can't figure out why, out of all the torture-plotted horror movies I've seen, this one was not enjoyable in any way. Seriously, there wasn't a moment in the movie where I found myself having a good time watching it, and that's what horror movies are for: allowing fans to have a good time with "horrific" situations. Perhaps this was the effect Steven Sheil, writer and director, aimed for. In any case, I can honestly say I wish I had chosen something else and left Mum & Dad unwatched. I'll take a Saw movie any day over this one

I'm not a filmmaker, so I can't even guess what kind of camera this was shot on--perhaps someone can answer that for me--but the video quality gave it a "realistic" look that helped emphasize dread. The video quality combined with the minimal, almost nonexistent musical score really brought the character's to the forefront of the film, which was a little different for a torture film. Traditionally it's all about the torture scenes, but this film does harp on the characters and their personal conflicts. After the first few scenes within Mum & Dad's house, the gore only seems to include body parts carried about in plastic bags, though there is one small little bit that caused both the heroine and me to gag.

Now that I think about it, this movie left me feeling the same way I felt after watching The Girl Next Door, though reading that book was a completely different experience than the below average movie. You sort of feel like an awful person for watching the movie, but at the same time you cannot help but stay glued to the screen in hopes of revenge, escape, something. But, like my experience with Jack Ketchum's terrifying story (based on a true story, mind), once that "something" occurred at the end of Mum & Dad I felt unmoved, still stuck in the grimness of the preceding 70 minutes.

My advice, watch Hostel, Saw, even The People Under The Stairs if you want a few visual gags, twisted characters, and a sadistic plot. Mum & Dad has all been done before, but not so poorly.

Martyrs (2008)

Not sure how to review this one! It's an intense movie split into three acts, but to review all three acts would be to give the movie away. As such, I will attempt to be as evasive as possible. Once again, the only way to experience the full effect of this horror flick is to forgo reading synopses and watching trailers. Just go in cold, let it ruin you, and deal with it.

The first act was amazing. It was entertaining, intense, gory, fast-paced; everything about the first act screamed high production value, the right choice of actors and actresses, and skilled directing. Both the visuals and the sounds were heightened for our viewing pleasure. Truthfully, the movie could have ended with a little twist at the 45-minute mark and I would've been a happy camper. But it didn't.

In order to keep from ruining it for those who read reviews without watching the movie first, I'll refrain from saying anything about acts two and three.

If you've read anything about this movie, you've probably read that the movie left people stunned, numb, low, and speechless. Well, it's true. When this movie ended, I looked at my friend with whom I watched it and saw a pallid, silent figure who resembled the otherwise jocund hockey fanatic. We both agreed that the second act was a bit too long (i.e. too hard to watch, especially for that length of time) and the third act was just outright bizarre!

Today I feel as though I'm floating through space while my subconscious performs the temporal motions of my usual life. I can't decide if I liked the movie as a whole or not. As I've said, the first act was an A+, but combined with the rest of the movie, I just don't know. It definitely messed with me, which is why I watch horror movies to begin with, but I don't know if I wanted these particular emotions stimulated (or, rather, singed off!).

This is not a movie for everyone, but if you love being pulled down into the dark recesses of misanthropy, by all means, throw this DVD into the player, heat up the Jiffy Pop, and enjoy.

Three... Extremes (2005)

Synopsis: Three short films from three extreme Asian directors: Fruit Chan, Chan-wook Park, and Takashi Miike. Chan's Dumplings features a woman who will stop at nothing to recapture her beauty. Park's Cut features a disgruntled extra. And Miike's Box features a dark mystery surrounding a successful female novelist.

Like(s): I liked the diversity found in each movie. Going into this, I figured it would be an over-the-top gross-out fest, but Miike, especially, held back and delivered an artistic psychological film that I will watch again. In fact, Miike's entry was appalling in its tact; I'm used to a very different Miike. I haven't seen any other Fruit Chan movie's that I can recall, but Dumplings was by far the most disturbing of the trio. Park's was visually stunning, well-acted, and proved his skills as a director. Though the title implies that this is going to be "extreme," only Chan's entry begins claiming that status.

Dislike(s): Park's ending. Somebody explain!

Candidate For Omission: No.

Also Try: Oldboy, Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance, Lady vengeance, Audition, Imprint.

Ichi the Killer (2001)

Synopsis: A sadistic killer...a gang leader...some violently assaulted women...well..schizo maniac...I give up. Suffice it to say this is a Miike film

Like(s): Nothing, literally.

Dislike(s): Bad acting, bizarre violence, wasted effort to "grose out." I don't hate Miike's stuff after seeing Audition and Imprint, this was just too bizarre for me.

Candidate For Omission: Yes.

Also Try: Audition, Imprint, Oldboy

Imprint (2005)

Imprint is director Takashi Miike's contribution to the Masters of Horror series. The story follows an American journalist into the depths of a strange island, in search of his estranged lover. Instead, he ends up with a prostitute for a platonic evening of palavering about the girl he is seeking. The prostitute uncovers an unsettling truth.

The first Takashi Miike film I saw was Audition, and I loved it. It's a shame I can't review it since it's already in the [ list ]. If you haven't seen it, see it; I'll leave it at that. The second Miike film I saw was Ichi The Killer, which I thought was so over-the-top it was impossible to take seriously. There was nothing scary about it, save for the ridiculous acting. I refuse to waste time explaining exactly why it was so terrible since this review is for Imprint, but what I will say about Ichi The Killer is that it turned me away from Miike's films with the intention of never going back.

And then I took a chance on Imprint.

Maybe this is another case of the low expectation effect, but I can honestly say that Imprint was an outstanding horror movie. From the very beginning, it drew me in with its strange macabre setting and characters. I could've done without Billy Drago's character (the American journalist). Whenever he spoke started, I could barely understand what he was saying. I think he was supposed to be drunk off too much Saki (Sake?) or something, but he came off like a bumbling idiot. The redeeming character was the prostitute who told him the story of her death. As soon as she reveals her face on the screen the effect is solid repulsion. Her face continued to creep me out more and more throughout the film.

She prefaces the tale with the fact that she sees the dead and prefers them over the living. When she freaked out over the sight of one of the dead, I flinched and had to look around the dark room I was sitting in. It caught me totally by surprise. As she begins to tell the tale, strange leering apparitions pop up out of nowhere, creating the perfect unsettling tone for what is to come.

It turns out that the prostitute lived with Drago's lover and not only caused, but witnessed her gruesome torture, which is shown to us in strikingly vivid detail. In classic Miike style, long, sharp sticks are jammed under each of her fingernails. For the thumbs, the camera gives us a super-closeup and unflinchingly delivers a scene that caused me to cringe and squirm in my seat. Too bad I didn't get any pictures of my face during that scene. I'm sure they'd be amusing! Perhaps I'll start taking "reaction shots" while watching Miike movies from now on. Anyway, next, her mouth is forced open, her lips are peeled back, and more sticks are shoved into her gums, causing her lips to remain pulled back. The woman is left tied up without removing any of the sixteen-or-so sticks from her fingernails and gums, which creates a nauseating image every time she is on screen. It's amazing how realistic the special effects are in this movie. Are we sure the actress who played the estranged lover is really still alive?

The movie switches back and forth between flashbacks and Drago's conversation with the prostitute to tell the story of his lover's death. Sometimes the two sequences bleed together as only Miike can do it. Those sequences were reminiscent of the bizarre scene in Audition when the man is becoming paralyzed. After learning about the horrific death of Drago's lover, the prostitute begins telling her story, which is where Imprint pulls out all the stops.

It's a typical childhood, really. Her mother and father were brother and sister. They were exiled from their village when people found out and ended up living in a straw hut beside a murky river. Her mother started running a primitive (the movie shows us the definition of primitive) abortion clinic. This is the first time I've seen something on screen that revolted and offended me. Undoubtedly, Miike's intention, and it worked. After the prostitute was born to the brother-sister lovers, she was dropped in the river and carried away by the current like all of the other products of the makeshift abortions. But she got caught up on a log and the mother happened upon her two days later and decided to raise her.

Just when things can't get much worse as far as moral offenses, taboos, and torture, the film gets surreal. Well, surreal and just outright bizarre. Don't believe me? Well, how about this: A hand starts to force its way out of the prostitute's head and it ends up having a face! Yes, I'm talking about the hand...the one that just slipped out of the girl's head. Apparently, the prostitute was born with a twin, and like Stephen King's The Dark Half, the twin developed inside of her skull.

At the end, the journalist manages to kill the prostitute and is jailed for it. Two jailers allude to the fact that he will be tortured slowly and consistently while waiting for his impending doom. Once they leave, Drago is stuck in the room with his demons--literally--and we get some irony, metaphor--dare I say moral?--but after enduring everything we had just witnessed, it was hard to even focus on the ending.

Imprint is not for the weak-stomached. This is as graphic and disturbing as it gets. Its horrors will definitely leave an imprint on your mind, and you might watch family movies and cartoons for a while to shed yourself of the dark skin it shrouds you with. But it is truly a well-executed horror film that surpassed my expectations and forced me to give Takashi Miike another shot.