Shit!

Yes, i have Hidden as well - the one about the videotape that turns up isn't it?

That's it. A really ominous, menacing 'thriller', I thought. I was absorbed, anyway. You should see 'The Seventh Continent' - really bleak and absurd.

Sounds like Hammer's The Lost Continent.

No , actually that's just absurd.

As for Funny Games, does it matter which version you see or is the US version a watered down mess?

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Nada (Roddy Piper) heads to the big city looking start over a build a new life for himself. But for Nada the dream does not always become reality. Soon he strikes it lucky when he finds work down town doing construction where he meets Frank (Keith David) who takes him to a waste land on the edge of town where the homeless have built their own little community. On the surface everything seems normal but Nada is suspicious when he sees some of the leaders of the community gathering in a church on the edge of the settlement. Things start to take a stranger turn when random broadcasts keep popping up on the TV warning people of a danger that people are unaware of hidden throughout society. A few nights later the settlement is raided by the military and some of the leaders are arrested finally confirming the strange feeling Nada as had all along. When everything goes quite Nada returns to the church and all he finds are boxes of sunglasses but these are no ordinary sunglasses this sunglasses allow the wearer to see the hidden treat now Nada must convince others to join him to remove them from society and save the human race from who knows what.

Not really surprising to see the name John Carpenter followed but the word awesome and They Live is no exception on the surface it comes across like a typical 80s good time film but underneath that good time exterior there is a much deeper message going through They Live. John Carpenter does a great job of tackling over the top consumerism of 1980s America. (Consumerism was exclusive to the US in the 80s no one had any money over here :lol:) I like that he directed it in a way that you could take what you wanted from the film his message is not force fed to the viewer its there if you want it to be or there is just a fun action Sci-Fi film. Roddy Piper and Keith David are both fantastic they work really good together and their performances are very solid and who could forget that fight scene every time i think about it it makes me smile it feels like its never going to end but thats not a bad thing its a very very good thing. Oh and Meg Foster used to scare the shit out of me as a kid those eye man they get in your nightmares :lol:

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:fear:

Film 8/10

Yep, SC is no Hammer film for sure.

As for 'Funny Games', the remake was supposedly shot-for-shot, no content extracted / watered down etc. Haven't seen it though, can only recommend the original.

Cheers Mr. T. :)

I pity the fool who buys that Haneke box set based on what I say, that's for certain.
Lolz.
Mr T?
Geddit?
Don't worry, I'll get my hat...

Hidden (Caché) is a masterpiece and Benny's Video (arguably a precursor to Funny Games) is also well worth seeing. Haneke won't be everyone's cup of tea and, in some ways, he is similar to Lars von Trier: genuinely gifted, films are generally, if not always, thought provoking and worthy of discussion but he is a prick at times!

If you're going to watch one of them, watch the original as Susanne Lothar and Ulrich Mühe are far better, more convincing and sympathetic than Naomi Watts and Tim Roth as the main couple, and Arno Frisch and Frank Giering are much more edgy and threatening than Michael Pitt and Brady Corbet. As such, the only real difference is the casting. In terms of the technical merits, although there is a different cinematographer and editor, Haneke has such control over every aspect of production that there is no discernible difference between the two.

Haneke's The Seventh Continent is one of the most harrowing films I've ever seen, not a single chink of light, a devastating film.

His latter work is also fantastic. Amour and The White Ribbon are both superb, both haunting in completely different ways.

He was due to make Flashmob this year but it's been scrapped.

Haneke is one of the great modern directors.

I completely agree – they are both brilliant films.

Re-Cut (2010)

A reality tv star and amateur camera crew are hired to investigate the death of two young girls in their families barn.

A ropy shaky cam movie with reasonable acting but a plot so dull i can barely remember anything about it a mere 16 hours later. The blurb on the art suggests the film is 'Really ****ing creepy'. Well it might be if you've never seen a horror film before. For those of us that have it's a laughable statement. Even a few scenes of torture hardly register above the lifeless plotting and uninteresting doc makers. It's a shame the film concentrated so much on them rather than the mystery of the girls death as that would have improved the film somewhat. However they didn't and it doesn't, making Re-Cut a waste of time.

Cellar Dweller (1988)

7/10.

I've just finished watching Mortdecai, which I had a very low expectations for, given the critical mauling it received and extent to which it completely failed at the box office. However, I wasn't anticipating the film to be as bad as it was, being a completely humourless affair, horribly directed by David Koepp (best known as the screenwriter for such massive box office films as Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible and Spider-Man) with woeful pacing, a script without any jokes and a cast including Johnny Depp, Gwyneth Paltrow, Paul Bettany, Ewan McGregor and Jeff Goldblum who were all inexplicably terrible.

The whole thing is completely misguided and I was wondering throughout whether the cast knew they were making a complete turkey or were somehow under the impression that the abysmal script and, even by his recent standards, Johnny Depp's absence of physical comedy and weird delivery, was somehow more than passible in a film which is supposed to be a comedy. The screenplay was written by Eric Aronson who, according to the IMDb, has only written the 2001 romantic comedy On the Line (which was also savaged by the critics) and, based on this, his WGA membership should be revoked with immediate effect.

I pretty much only watched it out of morbid curiosity, but it's not even worth your time as 'car crash' entertainment and is 100 minutes of my life I will never get back. Avoid at all costs.

Rats: Night of Terror!!

Got the old Vipco Screamtime DVD for £1.27 and all i can say is ive paid a lot more for a lot worse just recently.

"Anybody hear that? It's a, um... It's an impact tremor, that's what it is... I'm fairly alarmed here!"

Jurassic Park (1993) Back in 1993 I got home early from a disastrous week working in Carlisle, that night I offered to take my parents and three of my siblings to see this movie...It cost me £16.50! It was the most expensive movie I had ever paid to see! Now you pay around that just for two....and without drinks and popcorn! Anyway I cranked up the soundbar and let the neighbours think there was a T-Rex on the loose...payback for them holding a birthday party till all hours of the morning!

Robbery Under Arms (1957)

A very enjoyable British made, Australian set classic style western based on the novel of the same name about two brothers who join Captain Starlight's bushranger gang.

Starting off quietly the film improves as the story moves along taking in huge cattle drives, gun fights and of course robbery. A fine cast - Peter Finch, Ronald Lewis, David McCallum, Jill Ireland - ensure the acting is comparable to the largely well written script.

The Australian locations look similar to their US and Spanish counterparts and it's only the sight of the odd kangaroo bouncing past that removes it from the Americas and places it firmly in the Outback.

Better than the majority of western b-movies the Hollywood studios churned out, Robbery Under Arms is well worth checking out.

The Mothman Prophecies (2002)

9/10!

Quatermass and the Pit (1967). I was rather disappointed by this, especially as it started so well. I really enjoyed the first half, well made and well acted (Julian Glover, yay!) and all very Pertwee Doctor Who, but then it just sort of... went nowhere. Instead of the ape-men and giant alien insects promised by the first half, we ended up with... a "spooky" wind and a rather lame Devil image in the sky. Boo! I wanted monsters, damn you!

;)

Felt much the same as you about this one. Sold my Blu pretty much straight after acquiring it.

http://images.yuku.com/image/jpeg/5f...3bece12bca.jpg
THE BRUTE MAN (1946)

The return of Rondo Hatton as 'The Creeper'. Although released after Universal's HOUSE OF HORRORS (1946) this film plays as a prequel to that film, giving the back breaking Creeper a back story to how he became disfigured.
Once again, The Creeper roams the streets on the run from the police. He makes friends with a blind woman (Jane Adams) who because she cannot see him, is the only person who does not recoil from his appearance. Although a Universal film, the movie was released by PRC.

Rondo Hatton did not live to see his two starring roles on the screen. He died the same year in 1946. His appearance lived on in the ROCKETEER (1991)

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With all the high brow discussion of Haneke films I feel somewhat guilty for spending my Saturday night with this. Only somewhat however as its incredibly entertaining.

Essentially its a bunch of medical students Larp-ing a fantasy game in their research department. Roddy McDowell is their professor and game-master who has been working on a rage suppressant drug that he's testing on Baboons. The drug has the opposite effect however and the Baboon goes postal. They kill it but that monkey aint going no place and it seems even death cannot suppress that monkey madness and he promptly revives mid game and goes on a kill crazy rampage. So essentially a slasher flick with an ape. How can you not love that concept?!

Code reds blu-ray looks better than the shitty DVD release and has a commentary.

Spider Baby 1964
 

8/10. Cool movie. Jack Hill may be one of the most underrated Directors. Beautifully understated performance from Lon Chaney Jr.

Twins of Evil - 1971

Sat in and watched the German Blu release of this movie last night. Nice transfer, may be similar to the Synapse release as their name was mentioned on the reverse of the Blu cover, don't quote me though! Cushing was his usual brilliant self while the Collinson twins made sure my eyes never deviated from the screen. One of Hammer's better efforts, IMO. Will dig through the extras next weekend. Can't wait, because the 'making of' documentary sounds amazing.

Only God Forgives (2013)

Only God Forgives is a well made film which looks exquisite. Director Nicolas Winding Refn clearly knows how to light and frame a shot to make the film extremely captivating to the eye. His neon look giving the film a stunning night time glow. However Refn does appear to be on the way to becoming a one trick pony. This is the third film in a row which utilizes his insistence on the lead character staring meaningfully into the distance at every available opportunity. I found this quite tedious after a while. Thankfully the long silences were punctuated by occasionally great dialogue and sporadic bouts of insane violence. This isn't to say i didn't understand Refn's methods of showing Ryan Goslings complete detachment from reality and his subjogation by his mother, it's just the gazing...come on man...think of something else!

Other than that the film is impressive. Ryan Gosling portrays the driver, sorry, Julian, a Bangkok drugs operator, out for revenge of his murdered brother, who comes up against a rival even more hell bent on revenge - an outstanding Vithaya Pansringarm - who steals the acting honours from under the nose of Kristin Scott Thomas. Thomas, who was widely praised for her performance seems to be doing an impersonation of Katey Sagal's Gemma Teller from Sons of Anarchy in both looks and lingo. Either that or failing an audition for Bates Motel with a supremely rascist line before showing her slightly odd love for her son. Personally i preferred her ice cold yet witty performance in Salmon Fishing in the Yemen to this, but that's just me.

On the whole Only God Forgives is a fine film, let down by some all too familiar directorial traits. I would recommend this but i think you've all seen it.

I thought she was brilliant - I don't know any other actors who could have delivered the line 'And how many cocks can you entertain with that cute little cum-dumpster of yours?' with as much menace and humour!

See Sons of Anarchy for more examples then. ;)

I've seen the first six seasons, and heard Katey Sagal say plenty of similar things, but sometimes it just sounds like Leela with a potty mouth!

Given Kristin Scott Thomas's history of appearing in arthouse/highbrow French films (and Oscar winners like The English Patient), it carried more of a punch than if Sagal had said it.

I know what you mean.

Similar in a way to Ralph Fiennes when he turned up in In Bruges.

Which reminds me i must watch The English Patient again.

EATEN ALIVE – AKA 'Death Trap'. Had a sudden hankering to watch 'Eaten Alive' this afternoon, so I did. It's always been a bit of a divisive one, hasn't it? I guess people had a bit of a downer on Tobe Hooper for not coming up with something to round out the insanity of TCM . That's a shame, because 'Eaten Alive' is definitely worth some attention. I'm well aware that it doesn't float every Labber's boat, but I like it. I'd forgotten how bizarre it is. For those who've never been moved to try it, Neville Brand is the owner of a ramshackle motel deep in the Bayou (probably). He's also a mumbling psychopath who feeds his guests to his pet crocodile. Runaway hookers drop by and get offed. Weird families check in and the same happens to them. A little girl spends most of the movie shrieking and scampering out of croc's way. Robert Englund is a bit of a knob. Morticia Adams is a mummified brothel madam. Mel Ferrer tries to lend some dignity to the proceedings, but ends up with a scythe through his neck. That's about it. 'Eaten Alive' is as broken down and lopsided as Neville's travel lodge, and isn't afraid to play the gonzo card. We know this straight away, confronted as we are by the whacked electronic soundtrack which plays over the full moon title credits. The whole film is permeated by strange noises. Strange performances too. Brand is the forerunner of introspective psychos like Spinell's 'Maniac', forever muttering inane philosophies. Scenes of him sitting around humming tunes are closer to the heart of 'Eaten Alive' than the blood'n'guts (of which, there isn't all that much). How about those odd, odd character interactions? William Finley in that motel room, looking for his imaginary eye in the carpet? What was going on there? No quarter given to anything like rational explanation – good. 'Eaten Alive' looks incredibly stylised. The Bava 101 lighting is amped up and couldn't look more intrusive. To add to the alienation, the film has the feel of a play transported to a wretched looking film set. All of this is great / grating. The downsides carry less weight – it's a bit meandering, drags in places, some opportunities for true mean spiritedness weren't taken up. It's uneven. It's a little less than the sum of its parts, but those parts are pretty rich and strange. A film which deserves a bit more love in my eyes, 'Eaten Alive' nearly epitomises eccentric seventies drive in horror. Give it another go.

It was a textbook example of casting against type, hence amplifying the impact of Crystal's abuse and cruelty.

It's on my list of films to re-watch because I want to know how I feel about the and whether or not to buy the upcoming Arrow release. I seem to remember enjoying it, but can't remember whether I thought it was any good.

Coincidentally, I'm currently watching the other Eaten Alive – the cannibal film directed by Umberto Lenzi!

Well Frankie i'm definitely in the loathe camp.

However after reading your excellent review i want to watch it again.

So take some pleasure from the fact that i'll either change my opinion and enjoy the movie, or you've bored and frustrated me for 90 minutes.

Either way, you should be proud of the review. :nod:

Treehouse (2014)

I'm finding Treehouse a difficult film to review.

The story of two older teen brothers who discover a girl trapped in a large treehouse deep in the woods. In an attempt to save her, one of the brothers goes missing leaving the two alone with something trying to get in.

Despite a lowish budget the film looks great, opening with some gorgeous aerial photography of the surrounding area. In fact the whole film is professionally done. It's well acted with Dana Melanie and J. Michael Trautmann playing a couple of characters you care about which had to work, as for the most part they are the only two people in it. The scares are well produced, in particular a sequence where something is attempting to get into the treehouse. The fashioning of light, shadow and sound is done to great effect creating a suspenseful atmosphere as creepy as any i can think of from recent memory. The image of bodies hanging high up in the trees is also particularly memorable...

...there's just one problem. It didn't play out as i thought it should or hoped it would, and come the final act it became a crushing disappointment. The script rockets from the possibility of being supernatural or mythical and crashes down to earth with a clunk. Having said that it's all plausible, just not how i thought or imagined it would work out. The final shot perhaps promises a sequel as the film finishes at a great point leaving things very open ended.

Despite some terrible reviews on IMDB i liked the atmospheric horror / thriller that is Treehouse, whether you would is a different matter.

Im with Frankie Teapot on this one,Ive always luved this film,Neville Brand and a croc and a man named Buck.all we need is the cast to scream cry and to look like there on the verge of a nervous breakdown for the entire film and were done,wait a minute they do scream and cry the entire film and im sure someone went home crying every night after filming,tis a classic.so nuh nuh :tongue1:

Personally, I would have loved to see this get a Limited Edition Boxset treatment instead of TCM 2.

I have a soft spot for this one.

The Gambler and the Lady (1952)

An American gambler and mobster meets his match when he moves to London and falls for an aristocratic woman before being swindled by an upper class conman in a gold mining scam. Meanwhile closer to home, personal scores are about to be settled as local mobsters take over his new nightclub.

Reminding me a little of the Edward G Robinson classic The Little Giant from nearly 20 years earlier with it's fish out of water storyline, this Hammer production is a classic British Noir. Starring American Dane Clark and Naomi Chance, two actors i hadn't heard of previously, this is a tightly scripted little film which moves forward at a pace.

Even though it had two directors - Patrick Jenkins and Sam Newfield (some rumours even suggest Hammer stalwart Terence Fisher was the films actual director), the film could have been a mess, however what is on screen is far from a mess and what we see is actually a very good B-movie thriller.

The Eagle Has Landed. In the dying days of World War II, the Germans come up with a daring scheme that could change the outcome of the war - by sending a crack team deep into enemy territory and abducting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Winston Churchill! Michael Caine leads a fantastic cast (Donald Sutherland, Robert Duvall, Jenny Agutter, Donald Pleasence, Larry Hagman) in this cracking 70s thriller that, by putting the German characters front and centre, almost has you rooting for the bad guys. Terrific stuff.

Bit of a mini-marathon this evening.

Parallax view

Warren Beatty plays an investigative reporter and witness to a political assassination who becomes alarmed after a friend comes to him who believes she's going to be murdered. While Beatty is sceptical at first he soon changes his mind when she turns up dead.
All the deaths look like accidents but after some digging into one of the latest deaths he discovers some evidence linking the mysterious Parallax corporation.
Parallax view does paranoia well. Released 1974 and directed by alan J Pakula, Parallax taps into the 70's paranoia fuelled by the hangover from the assassinations of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and then his brother Bobby, as well as the fresh taint of Watergate. Ironically 74' also saw the release of the Book All the president's men that Pakula would later adapt.
The film has an interesting take on the normal conspiracy theories that were doing the rounds, with the ultimate conspiracy not being so much political as corporate. It's still a damnned entertaining little thriller that was well worth re-visiting.

Dillinger

Following the trend of AIP breaking major talents of 70's American cinema, John Milius gets a crack at the story of John Dillinger. The Ever excellent Warren Oates plays Dillinger himself with Ben Johnson portraying his G-man nemesis. Both Harry Dean Stanton and Geoffrey Lewis play gang members and Richard Dreyfuss is Gleefully Psychotic as Baby Face Nelson.
While I'm a big Michael Mann fan, personally I think this is a much better, grittier take on the story than Mann's Public enemies with some genuinely impressive action scenes with the bank robberies including plenty of Peckinpah-esque shoot outs. The passage of time sequences cutting together black & white images from the film with footage from 40's is a nice touch and the whole film seems washed out with brownish almost sepia coloured imagery and some great photography of the American Heartlands. The film really manages to keep to a period feel with costume soundtrack and dialogue. Overall this is well worth watching.

Cold sweat

A french-Italian co-production directed by Terrance Young. The films about a seemingly peaceful man played by Charles Bronson whose dark past comes to visit one night armed with a pistol. As his past is exposed he must fight his former comrades (including a wonderfully Sinister James Mason )
The film is a pulpy noirish thriller from a short story by Richard Matheson and feels not dissimilar to another French thriller with Bronson and Jill Ireland called RIDER ON THE RAIN. Its got peadophillic villains, heroin smuggling and plenty of violence on show and is one of Bronson's better films. (as is RIDER ON THE RAIN!)

Pretty much anything would have deserved the LE treatment rather than TCM 2.

One I haven't seen. It sounds interesting so consider it added to the watch list!