The movies I watched in 2013

Seen on January 1, 2013

Beware: This review contains SPOILERS!!!

This movie was a big disappointment. The first problem was the basic plot. I can stand a lot of illogicalities, but this was preposterous. A pair of crooks is in need for a döppelganger of a murdered woman, to accomplish their "cunning plan". So they try to find her by placing a simplistic advertisement in a newspaper for a (fake) movie audition. And they really manage it this way (what are the odds!). And we're not talking about a vague resemblance. She is needed to fool the murdered woman's twin-sister, who actually is responsible for her killing. Even when they stand face-to-face!
And sadly, this wasn't the only illogical thing. The characters never seem to do anything believable. The conversations are laughably unnatural.
I wasn't impressed by the technical aspects either. The worst was the sound editing. The ADR must have been recorded in a very crappy sound studio. No matter where the characters are located they always sound like from inside a phone booth - just a bit too close to the mike.

5-6.5/10

- movie 1
- horror movie 1
- ftv 1
- ftv horror 1

         

Seen on January 1, 2013

A heart-wrecking, shockingly powerful movie. It contains so much sad and disturbing scenes.
Even immediately during the beginning I felt the excitement of recognizing a movie that would probably become one of my all-time-favorites. This is one of those movies that comes back to you continuously - for days - after watching it.
There isn't much more to say about it. Except that it's a weird experience to watch such masterpieces relatively late in life. I'm 42 years old. Never seen this movie before.

9-10/10

- movie 2
- horror movie 1
- ftv 2
- ftv horror 1

          

Seen on January 2, 2013

This is a rather atypical, fun horror flick, of which I have fond, nostalgic memories. I had rated it an 8, because I don't like the imdb average. However after watching "Seven Days in May" (see below), I decided to change my vote to 7.
The first time I saw it, was in the Early 90s as the start of a horror marathon in a rather seedy squatters movie theater. I remember I could hear the sound of the projector easily coming from the cabin. Strangely the wikipedia refers to it as a direct-to-video movie - in contrary to the imdb. Several years ago I bough a DVD copy of the movie. The aspect ratio is cropped. The sound is horrible, far worse than in Dead of Winter (see above). I wonder if that's just a (another) inadequacy of the DVD release.

5-8/10

- movie 3
- horror movie 2
- ftv 2
- ftv horror 1

          

Seen on January 3, 2013

As for now I quote this part from an imdb user review:

This movie captures the paranoia of the cold war and how that paranoia tested the strength and definition of a democracy. The importance of civilian control over the military is well illustrated in this chilling story of a plot by the Pentagon to overthrow the US President because the military disagrees with his disarmament policy.
(Written by: Matthew Ignoffo)

7-9/10

- movie 4
- horror movie 2
- ftv 3
- ftv horror 1

          

Seen on January 3, 2013

This is one of those movies that makes me feel uneasy continuously while watching. The reason for this is that it deals with controversial subjects and I expect the makers to pick a clear side. And they don't! At least not clear enough.
Take for instance one of the major topics in this film: hunting. I've read most of the user reviews and none of them seem to have a problem about the fact that almost all characters in this movie participate in game hunting. I've been a vegetarian for practically all my life and I detest the hunting on animals with every fibre of my body. So when I'm watching a movie about a human beings being hunted "like animals" I expect it to be metaphorical but clear criticism about sport hunting in general. And some scenes indeed seem to indicate this. For instance the focus on all those shots of animal head trophies. There's nothing subtle about that. We're talking about quite lengthy close-ups that are prominently shown several times, without any glorifying subtext. I expect that almost everyone will regard the enormous elk head - on its bend neck - as one of the pinnacles of bad taste.
And if I may call for one other example, the scene at the beginning of the movie, where a couple of redneck hunters proudly discuss the last prey one of them executed, doesn't come across as promotion material to me. That said, almost everyone hunts in this movie, even the main male character (the deputy sheriff). And he is presented as a likable figure...
Then there's also the killing of the snake. Did they really kill a real snake - just for the movie? That's despicable.

As said, this wasn't the only uncomfortable subject. The main character is a girl who is lured to a small town night club and is forced into striptease-dancing as well as prostitution. However at the beginning of the movie she is introduced as a rather naive obnoxious adolescent. Because she won a beauty contest, she now thinks she's a real big-shot. Her brainless babbling made her look very unsympathetic.
Then there's the police department. Unwilling to help these type of girls, treating them like scum. Even the deputy guy loses his charm when addressing a roommate of the girl, who is worried about her disappearance.
The first time someone really is worried about the fate of the girl, is when some camper guy along with his two kid sons find her, when she's already seriously injured and in a deep traumatic shock.
Although his intentions to the girl ar sincere, the guy is a religious fanatic, who indoctrinates his sons with nonsensical ideas of hierarchy and discipline.

So, what does this all mean?
Is this the director's idea of "real-life people". Or is he some sort of moralist who wants to show us the downside of society. Or is he some kind of misanthrope who just hates everything and everyone.
Or did the deputy and/or the religious dad present his ideas of "good people".
What?

5.5-8/10

- movie 5
- horror movie 3
- ftv 4
- ftv horror 2

          

Seen on January 4, 2013


6.5-8/10

- movie 6
- horror movie 3
- ftv 5
- ftv horror 2

          

Seen on January 5, 2013

I really like movies about blobs. But for some reason I've always avoided this movie, because I assumed it wouldn't be an important part of the plot. I was wrong. This movie's antagonist is a blob - and it grows. Because that's what blob's should do. Besides moving around and eating people of course.

However it wasn't a very good movie. The plot is a nicked-together hotchpotch from several sci-fi flicks that are far more better, as for instance: Quatermass I and II, X the unknown, The Blob.
The first problem is that it doesn't manage to create suspense. The second one concerns those stereotypical flaws commonly known to giallo's.
Just to give an example. In Quatermass I the plot evolves around an astronaut, who's infected by some sort of alien microbe and slowly changes into a blob-like creature. The first part of his body that is deformed is his arm. Besides that he also looses his human personality. At a certain moment he manages to escape the hospital. A lot of these scenes are very suspenseful. The guy is really creepy, although the actor plays his performance deadpan to the bone. A very mentionable moment is his encounter with the little girl. It keeps you on the edge of your seat. You expect the girl to be harmed any moment.
In Caltiki there's an awkwardly similar scene. Also a guy-turning-to-blob - with an infected arm - who has escaped from hospital, and accidentally walks upon a harmless little girl. However this scene is totally devoid of suspense. Instead of portraying the guy as someone who looses his emotions in a zombie-like manner, he is turned into an over-the-top aggressive rapist (as some sort of vague flirtation to the upcoming giallo genre). It could work, but it doesn't. The actor is overplaying it absurdly and his scenes are not directed well.
Another simple example is the loudmouth quarrel between the main character and his wife at the beginning of the movie. Far too exaggerated, it's illogical, and it's of no importance to the plot.

Technically and aesthetically the movie isn't much of a masterpiece either. The cinematography already shows some of Bava's features. Kitschy with too much Clair-obscure and without a specific focus in the sharp contrast. Every shot looks overly expressive, but there's no functional composition in the abstract values of the black-and-whites.
The score is pretty bad and sometimes quite annoying. That means another take in the devaluation of the desperately needed atmosphere.
The special effects are uneven. The scenes with the miniature models are laughably bad. However the movie features a lot of impressive gore (by example: skeletons with still some meat on them). To horror fans (including me) that's a plus.
And the pacing of the movie is fast. A lot of things happen. But personally I prefer a less over-the-top movie with a more intelligent suspense built-up.

5-6.5/10

- movie 7
- horror movie 4
- ftv 6
- horror ftv 3

          

Seen on January 6, 2013

A rather enjoyable fifth installment. Although it really is entertaining I don't think it's a very good movie. It's just a repetition of the basic formula. While the opening seems rather spectacular, the ending (the restaurant scene) is pretty lame.

I think it's really a shame how they stick to the structure of the first movie, while there's a lot of potential for a new take on the original idea. A traffic accident and a roller-coaster ride disaster are likely to happen in a short amount of time. But the accident on the bridge didn't necessarily need the happen instantly. It would be interesting if the main character had a premonition of a disaster that took several hours to be completed (just like in a disaster movie). So instead of rescuing people unintentionally (they walk along when he flees) it would be interesting if he took a lot of effort to rescue several people - all based on his vision. It might take him a lot of difficulties, since an unknown force doesn't seem to be happy about these rescues. But let's say he succeeds, then of course these people still have to die in the conclusion of the movie. Separately - or all at once. (For instance in the airplane.)
It would be a new take on the same principle: death shall not be cheated.
And it would even be more fun, when they drop the average age of the main characters. A bus with elderly people really would have been a lot more fun.

It's a bit weird that I saw this movie just a day before the director died. He's also the director of the first sequel, a movie that I like far more better.

5.5-6.5/10

- movie 8
- horror movie 5
- ftv 6
- ftv horror 3

          

Seen on January 6, 2013


4-5.5/10

- movie 9
- horror movie 6
- ftv 7
- ftv horror 4

          

Seen on January 7, 2013

Very funny George Formby film. A nice tight story, with a few unexpected twists. When some little kid points George to a place to rent a room, I didn't expect it would be a prison cell illegally rented by the local policeman. The same policeman who's in search for him for pickpocketing, but only has seen him once - in drag. A lot of loud-out-laughs.
This is one of the few Formby movies I have some remembrance of from seeing it in my childhood. But because I'm talking about 35 years ago, and it is just a tiny little, I've regarded it as ftv.
It's a true shame this movie gets so little attention.


8-9.5/10

- movie 10
- horror movie 6
- ftv 8
- ftv horror 4

          

Seen on January 7, 2013


7-9/10

- movie 11
- horror movie 6
- ftv 9
- ftv horror 4

          

Seen on January 7, 2013


8.5-10/10

- movie 12
- horror movie 7
- ftv 10
- ftv horror 5

          

Seen on January 8, 2013


6.5-8/10
- movie 13
- horror movie 7
- ftv 11
- ftv horror 5

          

Seen on January 8, 2013


6-8.5/10 (Have to re-watch it)

- movie 14
- horror movie 8
- ftv 12
- ftv horror 6

          

Seen on January 9, 2013


5-6/10

- movie 15
- horror movie 8
- ftv 13
- ftv horror 6

          

Seen on January 9, 2013


8-8.5/10

- movie 16
- horror movie 8
- ftv 14
- ftv horror 6

          

Seen on January 10, 2013


7-8/10

- movie 17
- horror movie 9
- ftv 14
- ftv horror 6

          

Seen on January 11, 2013

4-6/10

- movie 18
- horror movie 9
- ftv 15
- ftv horror 6

          

Seen on January 11, 2013

5-7/10

- movie 19
- horror movie 10
- ftv 15
- ftv horror 6

          

Seen on January 13, 2013

The beginning of this movie was an utter bore to sit through. The story consist out of a huge concatenation of clichés. I could live with that, but none of it was brought to the screen with any sense of movie making in relation to story telling.
First of all this type of movies relies a lot on its mystery aspects. And that's not at all done well in this picture. I think the reasons for a possession or a haunting shouldn't be made clear too soon, already during the first part of a movie. Secondly, if you want to provide this information, usually it's not very clever to really show it with extensive scenes. Although I have to admit, this concers some sort of personal dislike of mine. 'Messiah of Evil', 'The Resurrected', 'The City of the Dead'. All these movies have scenes that 'literally' show the audience what happened in a past century, and it's always a sit-through. It always stops the suspense, the drama. It only provides information in a way that takes too much time, while the need of this info isn't very important. They're just obstacles. This movie could learn a lot from one of the first real ghost films "The Uninvited". Not only because of its way how to serve mystery and suspense, but also how to show a ghost figure. In NoDS it's basically a whitely dressed woman who still wears a hairdo from the 1960s. That's not very scary.

A positive aspect of this movie is its scenery. For instance, the huge glass house, the swimming pool hall and the underground passageways. But sadly they are all part of the disappointment. These very atmospheric locations all have so much potential for some really scary suspenseful scenes. But it is just used bluntly. A real waste.

The incomprehensible score is another huge miscalculation. The harmonica-accompanied-by-guitar theme becomes most annoying after a while, and it doesn't provide any functional atmosphere to a ghost movie that takes place in an old British mansion. During one of the action scenes all we get to hear is the insane irregular beats on a tin drum. Some suspense scenes at the beginning of the movie just have to do with some poor piano work. However in the second part of the movie some scenes get really creepy musical sound effects that are spot-on.


5-7/10

- movie 22
- horror movie 12
- ftv 16
- ftv horror 7

          

Seen on January 14, 2013

8.5-9.5/10

- movie 23
- horror movie 13
- ftv 17
- ftv horror 8

          

Seen on January 14, 2013

6-7.5/10

- movie 24
- horror movie 13
- ftv 18
- ftv horror 8

          

Seen on January 15, 2013

6.5-8.5/10

- movie 25
- horror movie 13
- ftv 18
- ftv horror 8