This week's viewings:
Multiple Maniacs (1970)
Raw, guerilla style film making with Waters' unique flair that has permeated his work throughout the decades. This one is rough and ready and flirts with ideas we see repeated (and more-polished) in later Waters works. Divine being of course a character for the ages.
68/100 Prince of Darkness (1987)
A Carpenter that I seem to enjoy the more I watch it. It has its faults, but the overall product is one which really gels with my sensibilities and the more so I watch it.
86/100 Charley Varrick (1973)
First-time viewing of this '70s crime thriller, which sees the cool and collected yet calculating Charley on the run from both the police and the mob after robbing a bank that just happens to be a mob-drop off point for laundered cash. With a tight, engaging story and a great central character in Water Matthau's Charley, this is how a crime film should be and is probably why I'm ambivalent to most modern offerings. Highly recommended.
81/100 Flowers in the Attic (1987)
This one seems to get mixed reviews, I'm guessing based on it either going off-piste from the source material or 'dumbing it down' in terms of the relationship of brother & sister Chris & Kathy. Either way, I have no point of reference as I have not read the book that this one was based on. Overall I found this one to be fairly enjoyable despite an almost 'Waltons' vibe to some of the acting, but it is a decent thriller concerning the gradual abandonment and distraught leveled at four children who are locked in the attic of their Grandparents' country manor and the hardships they endure and the shocking revelations they must face.
73/100 What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
Comedy-horror shot in a documentary style about three vampires living in New Zealand in modern times and the trials and tribulations they must face living in modern society. A hell of a lot of fun and it remains to be one of my favourite horror comedies of the past decade.
83/100 The Devonsville Terror (1983)
'80s occult vehicle concerning the Devonsville witches who were tortured and murdered by the towns-folk 300 years ago. Cue a re-incarnated witch moving into town just as two other liberated women do. This upsets the bigoted community who then set about killing these outsiders whilst the re-incarnated witch gets her revenge. Donald Pleasence plays the doctor researching the curse and provides a little bit more weight to the proceedings. Other than that and some gloopy effects near the end, there isn't much else to watch this one for.
51/100 To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
This one plays out like my '80s blue-print for a cop/crime thriller. It ticks all the boxes without becoming cheesy, drawn-out or procedural. It's almost like an '80s Noir but without the nuances. You instead have a determined cop trying to track down his partner's killer who was only two days from retirement, combined with a ruthless villain, an ensemble of supporting cast who really dial it in in terms of their performances as well as the '80s action staples such as car chases and shoot-outs. Add a down-beat ending and you have the makings of a great '80s cop thriller wrapped in the trappings of a Neo-Noir.
81/100 The First Power (1990)
Cop thriller meets occult horror as a man sent to the gas chamber is resurrected as a demon. It is then down to cop who put him away to stop him as the bodies start to pile up. Despite some pacing issues, this on gels the cop thriller and occult horror fairly successfully. There are also some fun effects and set-pieces dotted throughout.
59/100 The Guardian (1990)
Druid magic collides with suburban nanny. Whilst the film feels a little disjointed in places, there are some stand-out scenes here - the druid scenes taking place at the tree, as well as the wolf attacks in the house and the finale which make for a fairly tense-filled and enjoyable horror-thriller overall.
65/100 Julie Darling (1983)
Low-budget psychological thriller / exploitationer concerning a Julie, who loves her daddy a little too much for comfort. When Julie purposefully fails to act when a man rapes and kills her mother in their home, she is less than pleased when her father re-marries his mistress a short time after. She tracks down the killer after she purposefully fails to recognise him in a police line-up and enlists his services to kill her step mother when her father is out making it look like a robbery. Not all goes to plan however... this one was a nice surprise, as despite the subject matter it is fairly well-written, if a little predictable with decent performances all around.
71/100 The Changeling (1980)
Solid haunted house tale which whilst fairly long doesn't overstay its welcome. This one I know has a lot of stalwart fans and whilst it's one I rate fairly highly, it's certainly not my favourite ghostly tale; myself much preferring
The Haunting,
The Innocents, and
The Legend of Hell House.
73/100 Serial Mom (1994)
The week ended as it started with a dose of John Waters. Whilst the two films are poles apart there is no mistaking Waters' wit and unique style is firmly embedded here. Whilst no Divine and co. this is a lot of fun and Kathleen Turner is great as our suburban serial killer.
78/100