What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[nosferatu42]

Tourist trap

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Haven't seen this for quite a while and it remains a creepy, macabre and enjoyable experience. Has a Texas chainsaw feel about it (especially the bad guy) mixed with elements of House of wax and Carrie's telekinesis.
Four young uns get stranded, go to a run down tourist trap and get set upon. Nice atmosphere, a great performance by the villain and unsettlingly bizarre mannequins all add up to a satisfying 70's horror.
Recommended 8.5/10

[nosferatu42]

Absentia

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Watched this last night. Didn't know what to expect but had read some good reviews.
I thought this was really good, quite creepy (especially the first half) and well made considering it was obviously a low budget.
A lot of modern acting in horror films really annoys me, but i found the actors in this good, giving natural realistic performances that really made the film work for me.
Basically a woman is left unsettled and on edge after her husband disappears, and keeps experiencing visions of him in her house and wherever she goes. these early scenes really creeped me out and sort of reminded me of the apparition in Carnival of souls.
The womans sister comes to stay(who i found quite attractive) and they both support each other. Several years have passed since the initial disappearance and the husband is pronounced dead in absentia when suddenly he turns up distressed and terrified.
Basically something is making local people disappear and we follow the women as the mystery is unravelled.
The film relies on atmosphere and performance over gore and effects, and weaves a nice creepy spell.
Ultimately the ending is slightly underwhelming but it's a film that i think will improve on second viewing when expectations are not so high.
A well made alternative to the modern over reliance on shock and gore. The creepy reappearances are generally music less, which for me made them more effective and it was nice to have a relief from overblown soundtracks that tell you when to jump or react and more often than not just make me feel annoyed and manipulated.
Recommended 8/10

[nosferatu42]

Maniac

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Don't really think i need to go into too much detail with this one considering the amount of times this has been talked about here, all i can say is i really enjoyed this and thought it was equal to and maybe even better than the original.
It certainly gives the story a boost, making the reasoning behind his psychosis more structured, and therefore makes the character more relatable and also makes the relationship between him and the lady photographer more understandable, given that frodo is more attractive and their mutual attraction to mannequins.
Interestingly shot in a voyeuristic p.o.v way, it draws you in to maniacs world, i wondered wether this would detract from Woods performance but we are given glimpses of him in mirrors n stuff, which make it work well.
Good performances all round, well done gore which is not skimped on, nudity and atmosphere all add up to make a superior remake that doesn't disappoint and does the original full justice.
Even the ending was spot on, the only thing missing was Tom Savini's exploding bonce.
I wasn't gonna write much, so that's shows how good it was.
Recommended 9/10

[nosferatu42]

The Butterfly room.

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I haven't noticed this mentioned here much, and it generally seems to have been overlooked which is a shame i think.
Butterfly room is the first horror film centred around Barbara Steele in a very long time and she really holds the film together and gives a great performance.
Steele stars as Ann a lonely recluse with an obsession with butterflies, she has lost a daughter in the past and is overwhelmed by the desire to be a good mother once again, befriending a young girl who is a neighbours daughter.

All this sounds pretty reasonable but Steele's performance soon escalates into madness. She is great with a unsettling performance, one moment friendly, the next calculating and simmering with restrained menace, then erupting into anger,madness and fury.
As the story unfolds we discover more about past events, Ann's relationship with her daughter, another relationship with a girl who tricks Ann and basically uses her for money which doesn't end well. Also a side story featuring a local handyman who wonders what Ann is up to in her apartment and finally the secret of what lies within the Butterfly room.
I really enjoyed this, it's well directed with good performances throughout and features many horror faces everyone will recognise, Heather Langenkamp (Elm street),Ray wise (Laura Palmers dad from 'Twin Peaks'), Camille Keaton (i spit on your grave) and P.J Soles (Halloween/Carrie) all turn up.

It's more of an old school horror built around performance and story rather than gore, builds up a nice atmosphere and is interesting to see a largely female based horror.
Only downside is a slightly underwhelming final few moments after all the work done to build up to a tense ending.
As you can tell i really enjoyed this, but maybe i'm overdoing it a bit because i'm a big Barbara Steele fan. Either way it's definitely worth a watch.
Recommended 8/10

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[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Great reviews Nosferatu42.

Glad you enjoyed Absentia as i was one who raved about it when i saw it in December.

Pleased you reviewed The Butterfly Room as i'd seen it as a pre order then forgot all about it. It sounds good and will be a definite purchase at some point.

[Demoncrat]

Killer Elite (2011, Gary Mckendry). Five screening. My Stafam marathon continues apace with this highly polished piece of nonsense. De Niro takes the money and shuffles off muttering. Clive Owen looks like he's channelling Bennett (both Alan and Vernon Wells) and the love interest is the epitome of "tacked on". Regardless, I enjoyed this fluff, even if its attention to period detail is nil haha.

Boggy Creek II: And The Legend Continues...... (1985, Charles B Pierce). The 3rd (?, yup) film in this "series", from the man who brought us The Town That Dreaded Sundown, so eff knows what happens here. Maybe twas having his overconfident son on board? Or maybe he just woke up one morning and realised "I've wasted my life".

Linda aka The Story of Linda aka Die Nackten Superhexen aka Vom Rio Amore (1981, JF) Whatever title you find it under, this is sordid stuff, though not as sleazy as say, Doriana Grey. did you ever have a dream come true? hopefully not whilst staying at the Rio Amore......

Tried watching Bahia Blanca(1984), but gave up. Will atttempt it sober next time!!

[demonknight]

Birth of the Living Dead

A great documentary on the origins of NOTLD '68. The only crew member to feature in this, is Romero himself. Producer Gale Anne Hurd and director Larry Fassenden contribute as do several others. This is the fourth documentary to be made on NOTLD, and it's a good one. The disc also features a nice selection of extras. Sound is 5.1 and the DVD is region free.

[Rik]

Originally Posted by Demoncrat

Boggy Creek II: And The Legend Continues...... (1985, Charles B Pierce). The 3rd (?, yup) film in this "series", from the man who brought us The Town That Dreaded Sundown, so eff knows what happens here. Maybe twas having his overconfident son on board? Or maybe he just woke up one morning and realised "I've wasted my life".

Just saw this in my local CEX for 10p, didn't think it was worth that and I'm no need of any new DVD cases, so I passed on it

[keirarts]

Originally Posted by nosferatu42

The Butterfly room.

Attachment 132567

I haven't noticed this mentioned here much, and it generally seems to have been overlooked which is a shame i think.
Butterfly room is the first horror film centred around Barbara Steele in a very long time and she really holds the film together and gives a great performance.
Steele stars as Ann a lonely recluse with an obsession with butterflies, she has lost a daughter in the past and is overwhelmed by the desire to be a good mother once again, befriending a young girl who is a neighbours daughter.

All this sounds pretty reasonable but Steele's performance soon escalates into madness. She is great with a unsettling performance, one moment friendly, the next calculating and simmering with restrained menace, then erupting into anger,madness and fury.
As the story unfolds we discover more about past events, Ann's relationship with her daughter, another relationship with a girl who tricks Ann and basically uses her for money which doesn't end well. Also a side story featuring a local handyman who wonders what Ann is up to in her apartment and finally the secret of what lies within the Butterfly room.
I really enjoyed this, it's well directed with good performances throughout and features many horror faces everyone will recognise, Heather Langenkamp (Elm street),Ray wise (Laura Palmers dad from 'Twin Peaks'), Camille Keaton (i spit on your grave) and P.J Soles (Halloween/Carrie) all turn up.

It's more of an old school horror built around performance and story rather than gore, builds up a nice atmosphere and is interesting to see a largely female based horror.
Only downside is a slightly underwhelming final few moments after all the work done to build up to a tense ending.
As you can tell i really enjoyed this, but maybe i'm overdoing it a bit because i'm a big Barbara Steele fan. Either way it's definitely worth a watch.
Recommended 8/10

Attachment 132568

Saw this at grimm up north in October and really dug it. You forgot to mention Joe Dantes cameo as the cab driver!

[nosferatu42]

Oh yeah i forgot about that, nice one.