digdog-785-717538

.. i'm having a hard time reviewing this film, because this film is, to put it mildly, an exceptionally weird film. Now, i've seen Rubber, i've seen Hundreds Of Beavers, but this film is weird in a *different* way.

The plot, is about a kid squad of monster investigators - all 12 years old. Having grown up, the protagonist - one of the former kid squad, is pulled back into the world on paranormal investigations (cryptids, specifically), where she reunites with her old gang.

However the plot is just an excuse for putting onscreen weird, quirky characters with equally weird dialogue.

The acting, direction and pacing were all really good. The production is not particularly fancy, but makes a very good use of what little is needed to move the film forward.

I would describe it as an absurdist comedy, but it doesn't lean particularly on either the absurdism or the comedy; instead, it plays straight as if the themes, and dialogues, were perfectly normal things for people.

.. i quite enjoyed it. It was well made, it was different, it was entertaining. I'm not sure this is a film easy to recommend to most viewers, but if you're looking for something out of the ordinary, this will do just fine.

My vote: 7/10.

I can't believe Ridley Scott, one of the .. greatest filmmakers in history, is behind this pile of ..

Black Rain is .. not just "a cop film". It is the personification of COP_FILM.

The premise is the same as every cop film the setup is the same as every cop film the dialogues are the same as every cop film the characters are the same as every cop film even the sets, the props, the ending scene, EVERYTHING in this film is a overused trope in its most overused form, with Scott bravely ignoring how we've seen it all done before.

You know, there is another film that sort of does the same plot - Rising Sun; it is an absolutely horrendous botch job with Sean Connery's second most ridiculous role after Zardoz, but at least, at least it tries to do things its own way.

And instead Black Rain does the very opposite, there isn't a single scene that isn't a copy of something else you've seen before. You'd almost think Scott was trolling us with this film, but sadly no, it's a *straight* cop film, it's the most cop film to ever cop film on film.

My vote: basically an asset flip, 6/10.

It's good, watch it.

Essentially another version of .. Devil's Hour (minus the time travel), or The Man From Earth, with some minor Mouth Of Madness influences, it tells the story of an all-powerful demon possessing a prison inmate, and the confrontation with the psychiatrist that has to sign off on the execution of said inmate.

Being that it's basically just a single set and a ton of dialogues, then the dialogues become rather important. The basis is the catholic creation myth, the war in heave, the purpose of humanity, and free will.

Excellent performance from the lead Sean Flanery, good work from his counterpart Jordan Belfi. A few pacing issues which are common to these types of films.

If you're in the mood for a smart horror film that focuses on acting rather than jumpscares, this may interest you, although be prepared for a story rather limited in scope.

My vote: 7.2/10 - it could have been better, but it's not easy to say "how".