Mafu Cage
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Picked this up on a UK dvd retitled "Don't ring the doorbell", it's a really shitty sub VHS transfer that was too dark to make out what was really going on in a few scenes but still i liked the film a lot.
Two sisters live alone in a old house, one played by Lee Grant (Omen 2) is the serious but stable sibling, whereas the other played by Carol Kane (When a stranger calls) is totally insane.
Their father was an anthropologist studying African culture but after he died the
sisters are left in the family home that is filled with all his African artifacts, centred around a room overgrown with plants and containing a giant cage where Kane keeps Mafu (a pet ape).
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This is a film that attempts a classy vibe, it's more psychological than overt horror, but it has its moments, Kane has serious daddy issues, there's implied incest between the sisters and she ends up beating the animal to death before the films halfway point, so we know it's not going to end well.
The film's ending is subdued and downbeat, which was a shame as it could have been an intense cat and mouse game of death.
But, and it's a big but, Carol Kane is a force of nature here, she's basically cared for by Grant and kept isolated in the house, trapped in an environment where she can do as she pleases, which consists of pining over her father, drawing then beating on apes, throwing tantrums, listening to jungle music and dressing up in tribal inspired outfits.
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Her character is completely mentally unstable, at times gentle when she is producing her art (which as the film progresses spreads over the walls of the room), sometimes manipulative and aggressive when she loses her patience, smashing stuff up and hitting out while yelling "you dumb shit" repeatedly.
Yet you can emphasize with her character too, being isolated and left to fester in her own disturbed world.
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So the film has many flaws with pacing and the ending, (the shitty copy probably didn't help) but i found Kanes performance compelling and the unusual atmosphere, art direction and soundtrack made it something unique.
I'm seriously thinking of getting the US blu ray at some point and giving it a reappraisal as it was definitely an interesting watch.
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7/10
