September 2010 - Horrorphile

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Horrorphile - September 2010

EEL GIRL

September 30th 2010 13:08

Kiwi-Pom writer/director Paul Campion’s deliciously black comedy-horror that channels the transgressive visceral edge of David Cronenberg with the sly comic surrealism of David Lynch is called Eel Girl (2008). I’d heard about it, but it took me a while before I finally got to see it. Eel Girl won Campion, whose background is as a textual painter and visual effects artist, several international awards, and the five-minute movie which features the special effects work of Peter Jackson's Weta Workshop, continues to play around the world at festivals. Campion is currently working on his first feature, a Nazi occult action-horror-thriller called The Devil’s Rock (2011).

Eel Girl is slick, sensual, grotesque, and fantastic. And I finally found it online!

For further information visit the official website here

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Buried

September 29th 2010 22:55

The premise is very basic, the unfolding rather tangled. Buried (2010) is a Spanish production starring Ryan Reynolds (and assorted other actors’ voices) and set within the confines of a rudimentary, but rather spacious coffin (wooden box to be exact) over the course of roughly 90 minutes. Written by newcomer Chris Sparling and directed by newbie Rodrigo Cortés, both with an indie feature each under their belts. On the surface Buried’s garnered a huge amount of critical acclaim, but the deeper, blunter reality is that Buried is a bit of a charlatan; it appears to be far more impressive than it actually is.

Paul Conroy (Ryan Reynolds) is an American truck driver on contract work in war-torn Iraq. He awakens, bloodied, with a nasty headache, having been brutally ambushed by what he thinks were either insurgents or terrorists. All his colleagues are dead. For some apparent reason his life was spared. Now he finds himself inside a wooden box, no doubt under several feet of Middle Eastern sand. His attackers/abductors were kind enough to leave him a Zippo lighter, a pencil, a flask of spirits, and, most importantly, a mobile phone (a Blackberry to be precise). So now it’s up to Paul and his ingenuity to try and save his life before all the oxygen is consumed. Game on Paul!

Ryan Reynolds as Paul Conroy

This is far from being an original scenario, but let’s face it; it’s an arresting one, and more than just a little nightmarish. But pretty soon Buried sinks under the weight of its own ludicrous conceit. It is outrageously contrived, with more narrative conveniences than you can shake a turban at. Still, Buried manages to beguile the viewer along its narrative arc, if only because the audience will be so desperate to find out if poor Paul Conroy manages to orchestrate his own rescue, or perhaps find another way out of his infernal subterranean prison cell.

Your time starts ... now!

I have several issues with young Chris Sparling, because it’s his screenplay that is riddled with absurdities. Rodrigo Cortés’s direction is the real reason why this claustrophobic movie manages to sustain interest for its entire running time (perhaps his next movie will be better). The coffin set and Ryan’s confinement and movement within the space is filmed with all types of lenses from all manner of angles, even “breaking” the ceiling of the box to allow an eye of God perspective (man, the 17-day shoot must have been hell for Reynolds). Edward Grau’s cinematography is rich and vivid (the blue light of the phone, the yellow light of the flame, the red gel of a torch), and the editing, by director Cortés, is impressive, considering the visual and rhythmic limitations.

Paul gets on the blower quick smart

But let’s be real for a moment; pretty much anyone awakening to find themselves trapped in a coffin with no one responding to their screams of help would immediately begin to panic and hyperventilate, thus chewing up valuable oxygen. Paul Conroy manages to stay relatively calm for the duration, apart from the odd profane turn following a dead-end or cut-short phone conversation. Paul stupidly keeps his Zippo lit for unnecessary lengths of time. Now that sizeable flame would be sucking up air like a hoover! Simple fact is there’s no way Conroy would last as long as he did without suffering the effects of asphyxiation, thus causing him to black out and soon after expiring altogether.

Paul decides to use another lifeline and phones a friend ...

Next is the super-mobile phone. Damn, Blackberry receives sensational coverage (pun intended) out of this movie! Not only is Paul Conroy in the isolated expanse of the Iraqi desert, but he’s also underground, and I mean, under the ground. But no, his particular brand of cell phone has extraordinary coverage, enabling him to call several numbers back home in America - including the FBI – once he remembers them, since his phone is formatted to Arabic, and his phone has incredibly quick response time when dialing, plus excellent reception. Hell, the phone even films video and sends multimedia within seconds. Now this is a seriously cool device!

The sands of time are closing in!

Am I being too cynical, too critical? I don’t think so. This is a movie where the entire conceit rests on a series of conveniences and contrivances; otherwise, portrayed in the starkest of realities we have a whimpering man in a box in the dark for half and hour tops. And a commercial box office hit, that is not. Instead we have an average Joe (performed adequately by a so-so actor) with a variety of tools at his disposal, a miraculous amount of oxygen, and just enough collected calm to make those all- important calls to sort the damn situation out, even if it means facing a few hard truths.

Talk about a closed set!

But I have to be honest; major gripes aside, Buried might be a tight reality squeeze, but its surprisingly compelling, even if it is ninety far-fetched minutes of a sweaty, blood-encrusted young man within the splintery confines of a dimly-lit, horizontal “booth” making phone call after phone call after phone call, occasionally stopping to ponder about the futility of it all. Talk about a rock and a hard place!

Graphic designers take Hitchcock's Vertigo as inspiration

Here’s the teaser trailer:

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HORRORPHILE HITS 500!

September 27th 2010 06:14

Just a quick post - an unashamedly self-indulgent moment to pat myself on the back - to announce that Horrorphile – Pleasure of Nightmares has very recently acquired 500 email subscribers and counting. Woo hoo! I have 567 followers; a more recent net traffic addition in the wake of the whole Twitter phenomenon, and interesting to note that “following” is more popular than subscribing via email, as the number of followers crept up and passed my email subscribers very quickly.

I remember when I reached 20 subscribers and it felt good. Next goal is to reach 1000 followers, with email subscribers not far behind. I have to admit though that having subscribers feels more solid, whereas followers comes across as more ephemeral. Regardless of the format, it’s great having the support and it feels good that my list of followers increases almost daily. I guess that's where the jugular lies.

I know that around 90% of my supporters prefer to remain anonymous, and so they don’t ever leave comments, and I accept that. They like having the post update sent to them, and to read at their own leisure and not have to announce that they’ve read it. And that’s fine with me. Although the Debate Battle! Vampires or Werewolves post continues to get bombarded with comments, from all sorts. That’s a post I made nearly three years ago, and it continues to writhe and thrive, with currently 569 votes! I don’t plan on closing that debate any time soon; it’s an amusing and enlightening beast unto itself.

So, thank you once again to all the loyal Horrorphile readers, my True Believers, and please continue to spread the word. The more followers and subscribers in the Darkness the better the nightmares!

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Mulholland Drive

September 22nd 2010 14:26

An accident is a terrible event …

Part One: She found herself the perfect mystery

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Requiem for a Dream

September 21st 2010 01:30

Ten years ago director Darren Aronofsky released his second feature, Requiem for a Dream (2000), adapted from the late 70s novel by Hubert Selby Jr (who also wrote the equally grim Last Exit to Brooklyn), and a bleak and uncompromising tale of drug addiction and the destruction it wreaks. Selby penned the screenplay which Aronofsky then tweaked to fit his own personal modern vision, while retaining the period’s slang; it is a tour-de-force of visual and audio narrative that combines striking split screen and short montage sequences to enhance and reflect the effects of euphoria and paranoia. Requiem for a Dream depicts the tragic decay of hope under the overwhelming shroud of an urban disease; a nightmare blooming across the seasons.

Jared Leto as Harry

For New Yorker Aronofksy the production was a chance to tell a story set in his own neighbourhood, that of Brighton Beach, Coney Island, the rundown beachfront apartment blocks that look out over the aged amusement park with the Wonder Wheel, the Cyclone roller-coaster and the famous wide wooden boardwalk. It is along this strangely desolate stretch that we are introduced to two of the four central characters of this modern fable; Harry (Jared Leto) and Tyrone (Marlon Wayans), pushing a TV set to a local pawn outlet.

Jennifer Connelly as Marion

The television set belongs to Harry’s elderly mother Sara (Ellen Burstyn) who lives alone in one of the housing commission apartment blocks. She allows her son to “steal” the item, in order for him to obtain cash, and then she visits the pawn store and purchases the set back. She can’t live without her television, but Harry’s her only son, and she can’t bear to have him out of sorts. Sara finds solace in the daytime game shows, especially Tappy Tibbons (Christopher McDonald)’s Juice – “Be excited, be, be excited!” - If only she could be winner. “We have a winner!” Sara’s dream has been ignited! Answering the phone and now she’s gonna be on a game show! But she has to look her best, shed some pounds - no red meat, no sugar - so she can fit into her favourite red dress

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FAVOURITE SPECIAL EFFECTS MAKE-UP SEQUENCES AND DESIGNS

September 20th 2010 02:17

Tom Savini, one of my nightmare heroes, was in Sydney over the weekend as a keynote speaker at the IMATS (International Make-up Artist Trade Show). Unfortunately I wasn’t aware of this until it was too late. I’m slutted I missed the opportunity to hear him talk about his craft. C’est la vie, I suppose. I wonder who they’ll bring out next year … Rob Bottin, per chance.

Tom Savini

So it got me thinking about my favourite special effects make-up movie sequences. The real shit, none of this CGI crap. The real horror magic is effects work that is done in front of the camera, not in post. But there are so many to choose from; some brief, some long, some in dim light and shadows, others under bright light and in your face. There are the graphic gore sequences and there are fantastical transformation sequences. There are alien and monster designs and there’s zombie and ghoul designs. Where does one draw the line

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Survival of the Dead

September 17th 2010 02:23

My God, it’s been more than forty years since Romero unleashed the walking dead upon us. And Night of the Living Dead (1968) still kicks most modern horrors into the middle of next week. But George Romero has so dropped the ball with the latest in his shuffling, shambolic saga. Survival of the Dead (2009) is the worst of the six movies, even less impressive than Diary of the Dead (2008) which was pretty disappointing in itself. Standing back and looking at the entire series I feel quite comfortable in saying that Day of the Dead (1985) is his masterwork. Night would follow Day, then Land (2005), and then Dawn (1978).

Kenneth Welsh as Patrick O'Flynn

Survival takes place a few weeks after the dead have started to walk, so chronologically it occurs between Night and Dawn, and around the same time as Diary. The action takes place on Plum island near Delaware. It follows the plight of two warring Irish families; the O’Flynn’s and the Muldoon’s, and the soldiers caught in between who arrive on the island in search of sanctuary from the deadheads (as the zombies are referred to).

Alan Van Sprang as Nicotine

Romero has fashioned Survival like a Western. He’s also attempted to make the most comedic installment of the series, more so than the satire of Dawn. The movie fails miserably on both levels, and fails even further as a remarkable zombie movie, and as a horror. Romero, what have done?! I can only hope that before he hits 80 years old he delivers us a kick-ass finale; Twilight (or Dusk) of the Dead. The fans demand a return to form! Otherwise they’ll be Hell to pay

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It's Alive (2008)

September 15th 2010 23:52

It was a 70s B-movie shocker with a vague social commentary and dodgy special effects. Surely it would make for a great remake. Well, the DVD cover art looked great, and Bijou Phillips was in the lead. I’ve actually never seen the original It’s Alive (1974), written and directed by Larry Cohen, but I know enough about it, and I’ve seen enough stills to know that it’s a essentially a ludicrously far-fetched nightmare movie. So what was I thinking? I was kidding myself if I thought a remake would work. But hell, it worked for Piranha (2010). Only Alexandre Aja didn’t take himself too seriously, and he had a great team and cast working for him. It’s Alive (2008) takes itself way too seriously, and that’s the first fatal flaw.

Bijou Phillips as Lenore closes her eyes and hopes the movie will go away

The second flaw is the dodgy-as-hell special effects. I’ve not such appalling CGI work in a mainstream horror movie in awhile, but more on that later. The third flaw is the dreadful screenplay; vacuous and boring, despite Cohen being given a co-writing credit (is that because his original screenplay was used, or they hired him to help write the remake?) The fourth and final flawed straw that broke the baby’s back, so to speak, is the risible direction. Josef Rusnak has no idea about how to make a movie scary, or at least tense, and the death scenes were down right laughable. Except this wasn’t a comedy.

It's Alive (2008) Raphael Coleman and James Murray

Young nephew Chris (Raphael Coleman) with Frank (James Murray)

I’m not going to continue to make any more references to the original since I can’t make a genuinely informed comparison, apart from the curious fact that the original had a young Rick Baker on board to design the mutant baby (essentially a clawed hand and a baby mask his wife wore!) There is no cool animatronic work to be found in the remake. The mutant baby, the result of toxic miscarriage pills taken by young mother Lenore (Bijou Phillips) after being encouraged by her university roommate Marnie (Ty Glaser) who insists she lose the baby so she can finish her degree, is almost never seen in full for the entire picture. When it is shown it is a blurry CGIed baby, and not even in close-up; a truly abysmal effort. The only close-up shot is near the very end, and the fanged infant looks about as scary as a killer doll (‘cept Chucky was a lot more menacing

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Triangle

September 15th 2010 06:24

Triangle (2009) is written and directed by Christopher Smith, who made Creep (2004) and Severance (2006). It’s a movie to be taken with a grain or two of sea salt. Any attempt to try and comprehend the internal logic or deconstruct the narrative structure will result in psychological meltdown and a serious headache. The best thing to do is simply enjoy the ride and let the waves crash over you. Triangle is not watertight, but it makes for a fantastic nightmare scenario.

Triangle Melissa George and Michael Dorman

Melissa George as Jess and Michael Dorman as Greg

Jess (Melissa George) joins her friend Greg (Michael Dorman) for a day on his yacht, along with Sally (Rachael Carpani), her husband Downey (Henry Nixon), Victor (Liam Hemsworth) and Heather (Emma Lung). Jess appears anxious and preoccupied, partly because she’s unused to leaving her autistic son’s side for such a long period of time, but there’s something else causing her concern, and even Jess can’t put her finger on it. Only time will tell.

Triangle Henry Dixon and Rachael Carpani

Henry Dixon as Downey and Racheal Carpani as Sally

Emma Lung as Heather

Disaster strikes when a freak squall capsizes the boat and leaves the group in shock. But luck appears to be on their side in the shape of a massive ocean liner which appears out of the salty ocean mist. The silhouette of a figure confirms that they’ve been seen, and soon enough they’ve left the ruined yacht for the safety of the liner. But in reality (or a semblance of it) they’ve jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire … and Jess will continue to be burnt ‘til Hell freezes over

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Autopsy

September 15th 2010 06:21

Director Adam Gierasch’s directing debut, Autopsy (2008), which he co-wrote with partner Jace Anderson and pal E.L.Katz, is a guilty pleasure, I’ll get that out of the way first up. I went in with low expectations having been terribly disappointed with Gierasch and Anderson’s screenplay to Dario Argento’s Mother of Tears (2007), plus by the look at the rest of Gierasch’s screenwriting resume (Spiders, Crocodile, Rats, Crocodile 2: Death Swamp), it wasn’t looking hopeful.

Autopsy Ross Kohn, Jessica Lowndes, Ashley Schneider, Ross McCall

Bobby (Ross Kohn), Emily (Jessica Lowndes), Clare (Ashley Schneider) and Jude (Ross McCall) in happier times

However, Robert Patrick and Jenette Goldstein were on board, as was special effects make-up artist Gary J. Tunnicliffe, and it was my introduction to the drop dead gorgeous Jessica Lowndes as our Final Girl. Autopsy is a relatively low-budget affair; small cast, more or less one location (all interiors), and no hugely expensive set-pieces. It owes a lot to the European horror movie, in particular Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento. But don’t get me wrong, Autopsy has none of Argento’s stylish visual narrative technique, nor does it possess the otherworldly weirdness of a Fulci flick, but it does resonant with a Euro sensibility that suggests Gierasch and his co-screenwriters were nodding their heads to those nightmare legends.

Autopsy Jessica Lowndes and Robert Patrick

Dr. Benway (Robert Patrick) gives Emily a routine check-up

Jenette Goldstein as Nurse Marion

And nightmare this is, pure and simple. It is far-fetched, even ludicrous in places, with characters doing really stupid, what-the-fuck-kind-of-behavio ur, bizarre set-ups, and a the whole movie has a pseudo-surreal premise: college students injured in a car accident after partying on the streets in the downtown New Orleans Mardi Gras (hmmm, suddenly after the accident none of them are drunk or stoned anymore) are whisked away by the miraculous appearance of an ambulance to Mercy Hospital where suspicious Nurse Marian (Jenette Goldstein) insists they all be checked out by Dr. Benway (Robert Patrick channeling evil like only he can

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Legend

September 10th 2010 02:20

Based on a novel by William Hjortsberg, who wrote Falling Angel which Angel Heart (1987) was based on, Ridley Scott’s Legend (1985) was Scott’s third (and final) foray into the realm of pure fantasy, albeit not quite as adult or visceral as the two masterworks which preceded this. Legend tells the tale of forest boy Jack (Tom Cruise) and Princess Lily (Mia Sara) in a land before time, when unicorns, elves and faeries played free, magic, love and laughter was in the air, but goblins and trolls ran amuck, and the Lord of Darkness (Tim Curry) was making evil plans, “Mother Night, fold your dark arms around me, protect me in your black embrace!”

Tom Cruise as Jack

Legend has garnered its own folklore over the twenty-five years since it was first released. Like Blade Runner (1982), it had a troubled reception. Shot almost entirely on the huge sound stages of Pinewood Studios in the UK during 1984 and costing thirty million (a big budget for the day) it was released throughout Europe, finally arriving in America in April 1986, but in quite a different version. Shorn of twenty minutes and Jerry Goldsmith’s evocative orchestral score, the US cut instead featured a synth-driven soundtrack from New Agers Tangerine Dream and an alternate more fairy-tale ending. It was the US cut that became most commonly seen (and released on VHS). Finally with the advent of DVD Ridley Scott was able to release his preferred director’s cut (essentially the extended European version).

Mia Sara as Lily

Legend is a supernatural odyssey of love; Jack and Lily embark on a romance, and Jack introduces her to the last of the unicorns (a stallion and mare), sacred creatures; guardians of purity, not to be seen or touched by mere mortals. But Jack is mischievous leading the Princess to where they frolic, and Lily can’t help herself, entranced by their beauty, she grazes one on the snout, then plays hard to get, “It is my right to set a challenge for my suitors. I shall marry whoever finds this ring,” and she blithely tosses her opal and onyx ring into a deep pond. Jack dives in further quest

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The War Zone

September 9th 2010 01:53

Tom (Freddie Cunliffe) is a sullen, acne-ravaged 15-year-old with his hormones simmering. His very pretty 18-year-old sister Jessie (Lara Belmont) whom he is close with, plays aloof and secretive. Their mother (Tilda Swinton) is heavily pregnant, and their father (Ray Winstone) is stern and preoccupied, seemingly with work. The family has moved from the bustle of London to the bleak coastline of Devon and into an old farmhouse. Tom feels alienated, having abandoned his friends, and now becoming uncomfortably aware of his sister’s sexuality. Further more he senses something is not quite right in the family dynamic.

Lara Belmont as Jessie

Actor Tim Roth gets behind the camera and directs Alexander Stuart’s adaptation of his own novel, The War Zone (1999), into a searing, emotionally devastating juggernaut that obliterates the concept of the well-adjusted nuclear family. Although there are only three scenes of violence (a car crash, a beating, and a stabbing), none of which are graphic, The War Zone is one of the most gut-wrenching and wounding dramas ever made, as it deals with the most intimate and taboo of relationships, its inevitable exposure, and its immediate and shocking aftermath.

Freddie Cunliffe as Tom

The battle lines are only never drawn in this combat zone, for there will never be victors, only victims, and collateral damage. Incest between father and daughter is one of the most powerful beasts of betrayal, and The War Zone exhibits this demon as a cold stark nightmare of moral confusion. As complicated as the situation is for Jessie and Tom, the reality is simple; their father has descended into hell and is taking the family with him. The old WWII bunker on the seaside cliff top is first a crime scene, throughout a metaphor, and finally a sanctuary

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Nil by Mouth

September 7th 2010 23:32

“I remembered that day ... because I could've put that on his fucking tombstone, you know? Because I don't remember one kiss, you know, one cuddle. Nothing. I mean, plenty went down, not a lot come out. You know, nothing that was any fucking good ... He was fucking freezing cold. It frightened the life out of me. I was looking at him, you know? For the first time in my life, I talked to him. I said, ‘Why didn't you ever love me?’” --- Raymond

Based on his own experiences growing up Gary Oldman penned Nil by Mouth (1997) an utterly uncompromising, searing portrait of addiction and violence. With French director Luc Besson co-producing Oldman directed his debut (and only, so far) feature, the grim as nails life and times of South-East Londoner Raymond (Ray Winstone), his pregnant wife Val (Kathy Burke), her young brother Billy (Charlie Miles-Creed), and their immediate friends and family. It is a devastating, blistering nightmare of working class urban disease

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Naked

September 7th 2010 02:39

“You can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs. And humanity is just a cracked egg. And the omelet stinks.”

Mike Leigh’s greatest movie, Naked (1993), is a tour-de-force of direction, acting, and writing; the screenplay of which was created mostly from improvisation during an eleven-week rehearsal period. Director Leigh’s original script was only twenty-five pages long and in utilising his renowned in-depth dramaturgy and workshop ethic, he carved a powerhouse narrative about the desolation of relationships and the despair of humanity. A cracked, fragile society desperate for love, starved of affection, weighed down by the burden of urban pressures, maimed by the cruelty set upon each other by each other. Naked is the human soul and its psyche laid bare and scratched raw until it bleeds

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Deliverance

September 2nd 2010 23:27

Four Georgian city men head up into the Appalachian hills and embark on a weekend’s canoe trip down the volatile Cahulawassee River, intent on enjoying the surrounding wilderness before the river is dammed up and the forest land is leveled. Their adventure turns into a nightmare of survival as they are terrorised by two huntin' hillbilly mountain men. Deliverance (1972) is a deeply affecting, hugely impressive, disturbing portrayal of men and the nature of man that has lost none of its visceral power and dark poetry since it was first released.

Jon Voight as Ed

Based on the brilliant first novel from James Dickey, an acclaimed American poet and university lecturer, who also wrote the excellent screenplay, and directed with consummate skill by Englishman John Boorman, Deliverance is a tale of shattered naiveté and primal machismo with an undercurrent of social commentary (awe and contempt) that is apparent only through the movie’s superb use of symbolism and metaphor. Freedom is sought with single-mindedness, but the darkness of the soul is eventually laid bare, only after the mind and body is subjected to humiliation and violation.

Burt Reynolds as Lewis

Lewis (Burt Reynolds in a breakthrough career performance) is the macho leader, an imposing go-getter, who loves the great outdoors. Accompanying him are his buddy Ed (Jon Voight), a pipe-smokin’ family man who likes a tipple and a challenge, Drew (Ronny Cox), another family man, with strong morals and a dab hand on the guitar, and chubby Bobby (Ned Beatty), who likes to complain, but yearns to cut loose. These four friends drive up into the heavily-wooded hills and negotiate for some local moonshiners to drive their two cars down the mountain road trail to the Aintry river-stop where they’ll rendezvous in their canoes a couple of days later. The greasy gas griners wonder what the hell they wanna tackle the river for. “Cos it’s there,” replies Lewis smugly

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Flickan Som Lekte med Elden (The Girl Who Played with Fire)

September 1st 2010 23:50

The Girl Who Played with Fire movie poster

The second part of Swedish novelist Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy, The Girl Who Played with Fire (2009), is as taut and compelling as its predecessor, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009). A new director on board, Daniel Alfredson (brother of Tomas, who directed the brilliant Let the Right One In), has added a modicum of difference to the visual narrative, but essentially all the same elements are present, propelled by the superb character-driven storytelling that is at the core of Larrson’s books.

The Girl Who Played with Fire Noomi Repace

Noomi Repace as Lisbeth

The core cast returns: Noomi Repace in the role of damaged goods uber-hacker Lisbeth Salander, and this time the focus is on her and Michael Nyqvist in the role of investigative journalist and all-round good guy Mikael Blomkvist. Blomkvist’s media colleagues remain as peripheral characters, but are there to support him both professionally, and emotionally. There are several new and exciting characters, as the new plot unfolds.

The Girl Who Played with Fire Michael Nyqvist

Michael Nyqvist as Mikael

Blomkvist and his Millennium magazine crew have jumped on board the exposure of an Eastern European sex-trafficking ring. Another investigative journalist and his partner have already done the leg-work, they just need Millennium to frame and publish the findings. But evil forces are at work and the “Johns” who’ve been fingered are none to happy. A triple murder is the consequence, and Lisbeth finds herself the prime suspect. Blomkvist sets out to prove her innocence, and they become dangerously embroiled in sinister goings on that reveal a large part of Lisbeth’s murky past

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THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ALICE CREED MOVIE TICKET GIVEAWAYS!

September 1st 2010 01:07

The Disappearance of Alice Creed movie poster

The cool folk at Icon have let me giveaway a few double passes to see the awesome new psychological thriller The Disappearance of Alice Creed (2010) which opens in Australia next week (Thursday, September 9th).

Not only is this one of the best thrillers in recent years, with three stunning central performances and a brilliant screenplay, but it’s also one of my favourite movies of the year

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Open House

September 1st 2010 00:19

Alice (Rachel Blanchard) opens up her home to potential new buyers, which includes striking couple David (Brian Geraghty) and Lili (Tricia Helfer), who immediately take a shine to the house. Brian even takes a shine to Alice. The new home owners move in and make them selves comfortable. Fiendishly comfortable, indeed. This form of perverse comfort involves killing people, and stashing their dismembered bodies in freezer compartments in the garage. David and Lili have a very strange relationship, but codependent it seems. David, however, is keen to break routine, and that involves stashing one of the victims in a crawlspace in the basement … alive and shackled. Poor Alice, trapped like a rat.

Brian Geraghty as David

Open House (2010) is the debut feature of Andrew Paquin, Anna Paquin’s older brother (born in Canada, not New Zealand, like his more famous Oscar-winning sister). Andrew has written and directed, and the production smacks of nepotism. Oh I forgot to mention, Anna and her boyfriend, Stephen Moyer, both have bit-parts in the movie. Yes, very much bit-parts; Anna plays Alice’s best friend Jennie, and has about two minutes screen time, while Stephen gets to enjoy a few minutes more, before being savagely murdered with a kitchen knife plunged into the side of his neck after he succumbs to the psycho-sexual intent of Lili in the plunge pool.

Tricia Helfer as Lili

Because of their success on the True Blood series Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer have been used to help sell Open House, and it’s definitely a lure, but it’s deceiving as well. Ironically the movie is actually carried successfully by the performances of Brian Geraghty and Tricia Helfer (arguably two better actors). Rachel Blanchard’s role is borderline thankless, effective only as a catalyst for the collapse of the relationship between Brian and Lili. It is this psychotic breakdown that is at the core of the movie, and what makes it work

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews

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