kannibalcorpsegrinder

Desperate to fix him, a woman takes her boyfriend to a remote cabin in the wilderness to document what's going on, showing his gradual descent into madness as the study on his condition reveals a potential cause in a series of incidents that might point to a possession taking place.

Overall, this was a generally disappointing and barely worthwhile feature. The central setup here has some potential, with the boyfriend suffering from a series of strange psychological issues that are manifesting in bizarre behavior and obsession with sleepwalking that concerns her and their relationship, forcing them to take the trip out to the cabin to keep everything in check, which serves as a solid reason for getting them out there. With this even finding a fun reason for the found-footage format as not only is there supposed to be her documented coverage of the incident to figure out what's going on with him but the security camera footage keeping him safe, this allows for a series of different encounters showing the different effect that staying there has on him which includes the eerie screeching, him sleepwalking, or snapping into uncomfortable confrontational behavior that points to something going on with him. This leads into the somewhat likable finale where the full reveal is given, and we learn everything, which offers up some strong and likable action in the cabin as that comes to pass, all giving this enough to like for the most part. That said, the film is immensely slow and sluggish and never once establishes anything close to a worthwhile tempo. So much of this is based on the idea of these events happening, which keeps this one reliant on the suggestion of something happening rather than going through with it, so there are long stretches where it feels like she's pushing him to open up about his past or even what's going on with him, with little headway or impact in the film. His repetitive attempts at shutting everything down despite all the elements around him pointing to something going on keep this aimed more at a psychological level than anything more overt and lively, which makes the film feel like it's taking forever to get going, as it's only when the revelation about how he was born and what that means for his condition. Even worse is that little of this manages to be all that interesting anyway, with the couple barely being all that believable as a unit who's been together for a while with the frequent snapping and violent outbursts making it seem like there's very little about them that feels like a genuine, loving couple that leaves their scenes to be quite underwhelming and generally dull. These end up keeping this one down.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Mild Violence.

Shortly after giving birth, a woman moves in with her mother and mother's caregiver to help raise the baby, which soon becomes a haunting experience involving the belief that a demonic spirit is targeting her and her child, forcing her to figure out how to save her child.

Overall, this one wasn't all that bad and had some worthwhile elements. Among the better elements present here is the idea of the escalating tension within the house coming together as a fine excuse for the hauntings. The first half brings about a solid series of interactions here that paint the relationships between everyone in fine fashion, with the daughter and her child coming to visit her mother and care for her while she goes through her own health issues at her remote house in the countryside, only to be thrown for a loop when her mother's caregiver is also there to complicate matters. Filled with the usual assortment of issues ranging from passing on mothering duties to the next generation, long-simmering personal conflicts coming to the forefront, and feelings of inadequacy brought about because of her struggling to be a new mother, the section manages to bring about some rather fun moments involving the dynamics at play within the house when she first arrives. That brings about the solid and genuinely enjoyable series of hauntings that are in play whenever the daughter is left alone. The initial scenes are cleverly utilized with the function of being unable to tell if something is genuinely haunting the baby or if her debilitating state is responsible for the miscommunication it all gets written off as, giving the scenes involving her seeing something over the baby monitor, being obsessed with the crows that are constantly in the way, or the accidents that come about from thinking something is there. This is only enhanced by the constant visions of a spectral being in mirrors or the chittering noises in the background of the house that hint at an otherworldly presence which only grows over time as more events start to stack up against her, as the incidents start to create some chilling moments throughout here, all giving the film quite a lot to like overall. There are some big issues here that bring this one down. The main factor with this one is the series of storyline hiccups in play that make the whole thing confusing and convoluted. There's a few individual bits of outlandish behavior where it feels designed for shock moments but it instead amounts to out-of-character reactions that make no sense in the context of the film's story, from her flipping between her different personalities and an immensely problematic sequence where she attempts to breastfeed in front of other people that comes out of nowhere and has little purpose for being there other than to justify the mother freaking out again. The other issue here is the immensely underwhelming finale, which is rushed, comes out of nowhere, and undermines so much of what came before that it comes off as being inserted for the sake of being a twist, as it doesn't connect with anything going on in here. Otherwise, there's not a whole lot really wrong here.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Violence, and Brief Nudity.

Sent to Florence on an assignment, a female detective trying to catch her quarry is instead subject to a mysterious phenomenon that hampers her part of the investigation, but as she struggles to maintain her sanity, the real-world implications facing her continue surfacing.

This one here has a lot to really like about it. One of the big points here is that this presents one of the more intriguing and emotionally invested scenarios in the director's catalog by mixing together a slew of impressive themes and ideas. Opening everything inside the museum, where we get the introduction to the condition involving the series of debilitating physical occurrences that strike her, makes for a genuinely affecting and enjoyable starting point that helps to make for an engaging entry into the story. This is followed up by the equally-traumatic entry for the killer to come about to play up matters quite nicely after this traumatic opening, and since the killer's identity is never kept a secret as it's revealed within the first minutes of the film, who it is, the rest of the time is concerned with the continuous mind-games being played on her. With the rape shown to have such an effect that it starts to change her personality based on the brutal interactions presented, it all becomes immensely enjoyable to see play out. When the mental condition is presented, it becomes even better as the games become even more disturbing and realistic. That's a rather impressive feat, and the inclusion of it makes the film creepy and more unique. What's more impressive is that the titular condition provides plenty of opportunity to indulge a grand, inspired visual muse where paintings come to life around her as she enters the worlds upon the canvases in plenty of lurid detail. The camera swirls with its usual aplomb, lingering as much on the spectacular art and architecture of Florence and Rome as upon the death and chaos of the story. There is a striking scene near the beginning where they literally physically enter a painting in a hotel room and emerge out into a street murder scene in another city, at the end of which she then walks back across the street to the open waiting hotel room and out of the painting again. It is an extraordinary sequence and is done in one bravura shot, which is much more elegant for what is supposed to be just an exposition-filled flashback. There's also a series of impressive and beyond fantastic elements in the second half, where we witness the kind of psychological behavior and personality changes that come from the type of traumatic background that she experienced. Following up on the idea of her being thrust into such damaging situations at such a young age in such rapid succession of each other results in her being psychologically and physically transformed, turning her hair into a different style, preferring wigs of a different color, and exhibiting bizarre and unnatural behavioral outbursts that reek of repressed trauma. That creates the type of atmosphere where her paranoia is at the forefront of everything and seeks to come to terms with the various afflictions she's suffered through, which makes for a truly fascinating character study yet does make for a sluggish enough genre effort moving away from the traditional elements to look at the implications given here, and alongside the various kills here that allow for some really nice and gruesome moments, these here are the film's fun moments. This one doesn't have a whole lot wrong. The main issue is that the script here provides a number of illogical shortcuts that defy rational explanation. Late in the film, after donning a long, blonde, obviously fake wig, no one questions her when she wears it while doing her police duties. In another scene, she is being guarded by her former lover and wants to go meet her new lover. Even though the old lover already knows about her new lover, she decides to sneak out, and it doesn't occur to her either that a bathtub running for more than an hour might arouse suspicion, or that if she's in so much danger, she needs to be guarded, or that sneaking out might not be the best idea. Situations like this abound in the film, and rather than helping advance the plot, they merely slow it down. It also would've been nice to know why the situation comes up, as it merely documents what happens when it kicks in rather than offering why. The way it occurs, the film simply includes it merely to allow for the hallucinations, rather than using it as a sound reason to use it in the film. Rather than these little illogical follow-ups, there's not a whole lot wrong with the film.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Nudity, Language, a sex scene and several Rapes.