Prelude to /slash #10: See No Evil

Posted on September 18, 2014 by cornholio1980

See No EvilSee No Evil
USA 2006
Written by Dan Madigan
Directed by Gregory Dark

In previous years, the surprise movies at the /slash Filmfestival really were surprises. They may have dropped some hints here and there, and last year I actually managed to guess it correctly, but overall, you didn’t really have an idea what you would be getting. This year, however, they decided to give hints in form of a riddle; if you solve it correctly, you have a chance to win tickets for the screening. I like riddles, so even though as /slash pass-holder I got tickets for all screenings anyway, I decided to have a look and see if I’d be able to guess them. I’m now 99% sure that I know the Surprise Movie Y, and I also have a suspicion when it comes to Surprise Movie X. Something within this riddle (which unfortunately is not online anymore) made me think that it could allude to “See No Evil 2”. I could be totally wrong, of course, but given the fact that I don’t like watching sequels when I haven’t seen the first one yet, I decided to watch “See No Evil” just in case I’m actually right.

When it comes to slasher flicks, I tend to prefer those that put you on the side of the potential victims, compared to those that seem to want you to cheer for the killer. Unfortunately, “See No Evil” mostly failed in that regard. It features inmates, and right at the beginning they’re telling you their offenses; for me it seemed like the movie tried to tell us why they’re all bad and thus deserve their likely fate (“they had it coming”). The following 15 minutes did little to make me sympathize with the characters. Another problem is that there are just too damn many of them. I kinda get why they did it – the more people you got, the more deaths you can include – but it really hurt the movie because when the killing started I didn’t have the feeling that I knew any of them. Thus, the rest of the movie was a rather cynical affair for me, watching one murder after another, without really caring about anyone or anything that happens onscreen.

I’ll give them that, though: While the short introduction prevents us from really getting to know the characters, at least the movie gets going rather quickly, and doesn’t let us suffer through half an hour of pointless, dull dialogue. The killing starts pretty quickly, and is pleasantly brutal. Kudos also for making it rather unpredictable (at least for me) who’s going to live and who’s going to die, and in which order. I also think that they did a good job creating a memorable killer. Yes, he’s no Crowley (to name another recent slasher-slayer), but with his stature, his taciturnity, his hook on his chain, his dimwittedness and his proclivity for pulling his victim’s eyes out, he’s decent enough (if that’s the right word to describe a crazy, vicious serial killer). Also, with just a little over 80 minutes, the movie is short enough to never really get dull. Unfortunately, it didn’t really manage to engage me either. If the sequel really should be the surprise movie, I hope that it will improve on the first one – even though that rarely happens, especially when it comes to horror/slasher-movies.
4/10


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Prelude to /slash #9: Wolf Creek

Posted on September 17, 2014 by cornholio1980

Wolf CreekWolf Creek
Australia 2005
Written by Greg Mclean
Directed by Greg Mclean

First of all: I’m not a huge fan of the “based on true events”-trend in horror movies. There are very few that really benefit from this label, and more often than not – like last years “The Conjuring” – things get so supernatural that I can’t take the “based on true events”-preface serious anyway. Given the fact that this is about a serial killer that lives in the outback of Australia and picks on tourists, this is admittedly not a problem here. Nevertheless, when in the end you notice that a) most of the stuff that happens in the 2nd half of the movie must be fictional by default, and b) there’s a possibility that there never was such a killer in reality, it brings me back to my main question with this label: What do filmmakers try to achieve? A bad movie won’t get any better because it’s “based on true events”, and a great movie won’t get any worse because it’s completely fictional. Thus, since I’m not a huge fan of such prefaces, “Wolf Creek” and I weren’t off to a good start.

The next half hour didn’t do a lot to conciliate me with the movie. It’s your typical slasher movie entrance where they introduce the protagonists, and while I definitely have seen a lot worse when it comes to characters in horror movies (meaning: at least I didn’t wish for them to die), it also did little to really make me sympathize/relate to them. They were… ok, but a little bland overall. The movie isn’t helped by clichés like the weird dudes in a pub that make fun of strangers, or the constantly shifting video/production quality. The static shots seemed to have been taken with a regular film camera, and looked great, but most of the movie seems to have been shot on a digital camcorder. Also, the (handheld) camera is shaking all the time, giving this movie an almost documentary/found footage-feel, something I’m not particularly fond of. And: Did they ever explain why the watches and the car broke down? Was it because of the crater?!

However, after a shaky start, the movie finally started to gain momentum at the half hour mark, when Mick Taylor offers to help them. The next 15 minutes do a good job conveying a sense of dread and danger; we just all know what’s going to happen. Then, roughly 45 minutes into the movie, it really kicked into high gear. The following 15-20 minutes are some of the finest that I’ve seen in a horror movie in a while. I love that we see everything that’s happening just from the perspective of one of the victims. “Wolf Creek” does a good job of putting us into her position, and asking us: “What would you do?” – which is one of my favorite things in horror movie. Would you run away, try to call for help, try to save your friends, go up against the killer…? I loved the shit out of that part. [SPOILERS] Granted, they lost some of my appreciation again when the gal first tried to “double dip” (to quote “Zombieland”) – which was great! – but then failed to just pick up the knife that Mick had in his hands just seconds earlier, and stab him to death with it [/SPOILERS], but since I knew that this had to happen and I actually finally had a good time with the movie, I could get over it. I also liked how the movie shifted the perspective again and again afterwards. I may be inclined to criticise some of the actions of the protagonists, but overall, they didn’t do too bad. At least there were no scenes that had me facepalm like it’s 2366.

So, to sum it up: Didn’t much care for the first half, loved the 3rd quarter, liked the 4th quarter.
7/10

PS: Thanks to Maynard for lending me his DVD!


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Prelude to /slash #8: The ABCs of Death

Posted on September 16, 2014 by cornholio1980

The ABCs of DeathThe ABCs of Death
USA/NZ 2012
Written by a whole bunch of people
Directed by even more people

While I have nothing against anthology-films in general, I was very sceptic about this one. 26 short films about death, each 4 minutes long? That just seemed far too short to really make an impression. Hell, I sometimes have the feeling that some movie trailers are longer than that! So pretty much from the outset, you have to lower your expectation when it comes to characters, story, and so on. Ultimately, it sounded like a movie that’s reduced to the death scenes from the “Final Destination”-series. Which didn’t sound my cup of tea at all – thus I hadn’t watched this yet. However, since they are going to show the sequel at this years /slash filmfestival, and I want to be able to compare them both, it was time to finally give it a chance.

I’m sorry to say that my reluctance was warranted. While I can enjoy a glorious kill in a horror movie as much as the next guy, I’m not the biggest splatter-fan; eg. I prefer my horror movies to offer a little bit more than just gory deaths. To be fair, “The ABCs of Death” is not a collection of one brutal, bloody death after another, and offers some originality here and there. But most of the shorts didn’t really make an impression on me. Since this review would be far too long if I wrote about each segmet individually, let’s focus on those that did leave an impression, be it good or bad. First of all: It might not be very political correct to say that, but damn… those Japanese sure are some weird dudes. One segment crazier than the other – and unfortunately those also were mostly the ones that I didn’t really like. Segmet F, for me, was the worst one by far(t), with Z not far behind. In general, some of the shorts were just too weird/surreal for me, like D, or W (aptly named “WTF!”). Since I’m also not a huge fan of toilet humor, I have to also include K in the list of shorts that I didn’t like (at least it was animated). And sometimes, the names did seem a little arbitrary (like “Apocalypse” or “Bigfoot”).

However, there also were a couple of standouts. My favorite segment was “S is for Speed”, which seemed like your typical slasher flick, but then featured a dark twist. “L is for Libido” was also great, in an extremely dark kind of way. Especially the moment when they bring in the kid really sickened me – as it should. “N is for Nuptials” was pretty much a comedy/gag, but I found it very entertaining and funny. “Q is for quack” was interesting too, with its meta-approach. “U is for unearthed” I liked because of the “first person”-perspective (even though they did that even better in “V/H/S 2”, and “X is for XXL” for its message against our obsession with beauty, and the haunting last image. And as a huge SF-fan, I also enjoyed “V is for Vagitus”. The rest, however, didn’t do anything for me, and ultimately, this anthology for me was not more, but less than the sum of its parts.
4/10

PS: Thanks to Maynard for lending me his DVD!


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Prelude to /slash #7: Sien nui yau wan (A Chinese Ghost Story)

Posted on September 15, 2014 by cornholio1980

A Chinese Ghost StorySien nui yau wan (A Chinese Ghost Story)
Hong Kong 1987
Written by Gai Chi Yuen
Directed by Siu-Tung Ching

After an absolutely brilliant, gloriously shot and beautifully looking prologue that for me also was the best part of the movie, an uber-kitschy title song kicks in, and suddenly I started to wonder if “A Chinese Ghost Story” offered the template for the so-called “Bollywood”-cinema (even though it’s from Hong Kong) – an impression that was further reinforced by the no less-kitschy love-story as well as the fact that the movie featured a couple more songs after the credits sequence (no dancing, though). But while I’m not a huge fan of typical Bollywood-movies and can only enjoy them in a “getting drunk with friends and making fun of them”-kind of way, I thoroughly enjoyed “A Chinese Ghost Story”. The one thing that irked me a little bit, however, was it’s uneven tone. The movie is all over the place, offering some mild scares, lots of humorous scenes, a romantic love story, over the top Kung Fu-fighting, the occasional song, and some really weird monsters… and as much as I might have enjoyed most of those individual elements, I’m not 100% sure if they really fit together convincingly, seamlessly and successfully. Also, there were a couple of scenes – like the judge – that didn’t really work for me.

However, WHEN it works, it REALLY works. Since I’m an incurable romantic, I especially liked the love story. Yes, it was exaggerated and kitschy and over-the top… and I loved every second of it. For whatever reason, I seem to have a marked preference for tragic love stories; make of that what you will. I also loved the way they handled the ghost/flight-scenes. The whole movie was exceptionally well shot, with lots of impressive visuals and beautiful scenes that managed to impress me despite the fact that the film print I saw was in really bad shape. It’s also completely bonkers. Mummies in the attic? A demon whose voice switches constantly between male and female? A sorcerer with weird magical abilities? A treemonster with a miles-long tongue? And, finally, a quick side trip to hell, including a fight with the devil? Seriously, this is some crazy, weird shit – and I loved it. It’s really something else, and highly imaginative. Add to that lots and lots of funny scenes, great performances from all involved, as well as a beautiful soundtrack, and you have a highly enjoyable, albeit not flawless, movie.
7/10


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Prelude to /slash #6: God Told Me To

Posted on September 14, 2014 by cornholio1980

Gold Told Me ToGold Told Me To
USA 1976
Written by Larry Cohen
Directed by Larry Cohen

It’s now been more than 24 hours since I’ve seen it, and I’m still not sure what to make of it – which makes writing a review rather difficult. It’s… just totally weird. Going in, I only knew that it was about a sniper that shot people because God told him to (hence the title), and I expected some sort of thriller, with the cop arresting the guy, trying to find out why he did it, and then kinda going insane too. But that’s so not what this is. Instead, right after Peter Nicholas confronts the sniper, he says “God told me to”, and jumps off the water tower. Shortly afterwards, more killing sprees occur, which follow the same pattern. For a while, I was worried that this might actually go the supernatural, or rather religious, route – with all those guys telling the police that they acted in the name of god, and actually a guy who I thought was a priest calling the police and warning them about another rampage that would occur shortly after at a parade, and who even knew how many people are going to get killed.

Thank god (no pun intended), the movie then took a totally different route. I definitely liked this angle, but boy oh boy, does the movie get weird. That strange blond-golden dude. His origins. His connection to Peter. And the ending. Oh my god that ending. I will never get the picture of that vagina out of my head. What the fuck, dude? I’m not saying it was bad, but it definitely was a little TOO fucked up for me. There are other things that are easier and more objectively to criticize. The whole movie is VERY low budget, so don’t expect any flashy visuals. That alone is not a problem, but when you have a sound track that wasn’t adjusted or revised in post in any way, you get scenes that are very sloppily cobbled together, and where the sound is constantly shifting with every cut, which really took me out of the movie. For example, in one shot you would hear cars in the background, and in the next one you wouldn’t. Things like that appear constantly, and I found it to be extremely distracting. Also, most of the movie was shot with handheld cameras, which might give some scenes an almost documentary feel, but also gets you some rather jarring camera moves. Ultimately, the way it is shot doesn’t really hold up to its story and ideas, bringing the whole movie down considerably. However, every fan of the weird owes it to himself to watch this at least once.
4/10


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Prelude to /slash #5: Near Dark

Posted on September 13, 2014 by cornholio1980

Near DarkNear Dark
USA 1987
Written by Kathryn Bigelow & Eric Red
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow

“Near Dark” is as 80s as 80s-movies get. The blueish color palette, the synthesizer-soundtrack, the costumes, the atmosphere… it lives and breathes the 80s. As a huge fan of this peroid in movie-making, this part of “Near Dark” definitely spoke to me. Kathryn Bigelow’s direction is also really excellent. It is exquisitely shot, with some beautiful, haunting images and many dark, moody scenes. The cast is also (mostly) great. Adrian Paster is a little bland as the main protagonist, but that’s not really a problem when you got such a strong ensemble that features, among others, three “Aliens”-alumni (Lance Henriksen, Bill Paxton & Jenette Goldstein), an enchanting performance by Jenny Wright, as well as a super-creepy turn by Joshua Miller. I also really liked the setup, the romance between Caled and Mae (especially their weird, but romantic, first night together), and the first third of the movie in particular. And the shootout in the cottage is definitely one of the standout moments of the movie, and truly memorable.

However, I found the second act of the movie a little uneven. The bar-scene in particular stood out to me as rather weird, slightly cartoonish, and not entirely successful. And the last act didn’t really live up to what came before. The showdown was especially disappointing, and didn’t hold a candle to that great shootout from before. And I was also taken aback by the way they healed Caleb from his vampirism. That didn’t convince me at all. Finally, I would have preferred a different ending to the movie. One where Jesse and the others simply leave Caleb alone, there’s this one short scene between him and Mae at the swing, and then we jump forward in time to when Caleb is old and dying, and Mae comes back to him and asks him if he regrets his choice now. I dunno, I would have found it poetical (feel free to disagree). It definitely would have been more unusual than the rather generic showdown and finale that “Near Dark” gave us. Nevertheless, it is a very good vampire movie that again shows how this myth in particular seems to invite very different interpretations and approaches – which for me is one of the main advantages of this horror-subgenre.
7/10


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Prelude to /slash #4: Profondo Rosso (Deep Red)

Posted on September 12, 2014 by cornholio1980

Profondo Rosso (Deep Red))Profondo Rosso
Italy 1975
Written by Dario Argento & Bernardino Zapponi
Directed by Dario Argento

Maybe it was my heightened expectations after “Suspiria”, but I wasn’t that taken with “Profondo Rosso”. It’s a decent movie and I enjoyed watching it, but it didn’t blow me away. I’m also not quite sure if I would call it horror. Yes, it starts out creepy enough, and the first kill is brutal and memorable, but afterwards, it’s more of a murder mystery with thriller elements than a straight-out horror movie. Which isn’t bad per se (I love murder mysteries!), but for me, it was a little too mellow and light, and – apart from a couple of great sequences – not quite gripping and tense enough.

One thing that I defintely have to hold in it’s favor: When it comes to the identity of the killer, Argento really managed to trick me. I completely fell for a red herring, and expected a certain twist, looking for clues and checking if every new reveal still supported my theory – and scratching my head if they didn’t, and trying to find ways to still make it work, since I was so sure that I knew where this was heading. Unfortunately, as “movie logic” as my reveal admittedly would have been, I think I would have preferred it to the one that “Profondo Rosso” ultimately offered. There are actually two reveals, and I couldn’t get behind the first one, since it didn’t make any sense. The reason for that is resolved with the second reveal, which again I didn’t see coming, but unfortunately, I found the shot that revealed the killer to be unintentionally (?) funny, and not frightening. Something about this scene just didn’t work for me. Also, both reveals leave the question unanswered how the killer always knew exactly what Marcus Daly was up to, and managed to follow in his footsteps. And, above all, the reveal(s) didn’t manage to shock me at all. They were more of the shrug-variety.

I loved the first 10-15 minuten, however. Yes, the psychic-stuff was a little weird, but actually, the first sequence made me think a lot of “Halloween”. The holiday season-setting (christmas instead of halloween), the knife, the child, the children’s song (which is put to great, creepy use during the rest of the movie)… I can easily see “Profondo Rosso” being a slight influence for John Carpenter. After the murder, the two sequences that stood out for me were the second killing (I especially loved everything about the steam), and Marcus Daly exploring the mansion. I also loved the feministic undertones, and the banter between Marcus and Gianna was nice. On the other hand, I think that with over 120 minutes, it’s a little too long. It’s also not even remotely as visually stunning as “Suspiria”, even though there are a couple of nice shots here and there. And I’m not sure I completely got why Marcus felt the need to investigate the murder himself. Still, it’s a a nice little movie overall – but one that I don’t feel the need to revisit anytime soon.
6/10


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Prelude to /slash #3: Halloween

Posted on September 11, 2014 by cornholio1980

HalloweenHalloween
USA 1978
Written by John Carpenter & Debra Hill
Directed by John Carpenter

Obviously, I had seen this a couple of times already, but when the Filmmuseum annouced it as part of their horror retrospective, I jumped at the chance to see it on the big screen for the first time. And what can I say: It still holds up really well. I can also definitely say that from all the times that I’ve seen this movie, this was my favorite. It’s just one of those films that get enhanced greatly when watched with an audience.

Since I came to horror rather late in my life, and am not an uber-expert, I’m always reluctant to talk about the history of the genre, but I hope I’m not completely off when claiming that John Carpenter offered the template for the (teenie) slasher flick with this?!?! Even when watching a modern slasher flick, the influence of “Halloween” is undeniable. Unfortunately, seldomly have other movies achieved a similar quality. Of course, part of what’s so great about “Halloween” is how iconic it all is. The setting at Halloween, the unforgettable main theme, the towering Michael Myers with his big knife and the William Shatner-mask… “Halloween” has everything that you need for a great slasher flick: Likeable (possible) victims, a great final girl in Jamie Lee Curtis, a remarkable villain, and some memorable deaths.

One of the best things about “Halloween” is the beginning. I’m not sure if this actually was the first time that a director put the viewer in the position of the killer, and let’s you see the murder through his eyes, but it sure made a hell of an impression on me back when I saw it for the first time, and even nowadays, I love the shit out of that sequence (which is why, whenever another movie does something similar, I came to call it the “Myers cam”). Also, on first viewing you might expect a slow start; that Loomis and the nurse will arrive at the asylum and start treating Myers, before he finally breaks out. But no; as soon as you see the patients running around and the music kicks in, you know what’s happening, and that Myers is already on the loose.

Carpenter finds a good balance between mood and jump scares. I’m not the biggest fan of the latter, however that’s less because of the tool itself than how it’s used most of the time, at least nowadays. They crank up the volume to a degree that you would still jump out of your seat even if they would just show a picture of the Teletubbies. Not so here. Yes, of course the jump scares are accompanied by a sound or a music cue, but those are there to enhance the scare, not to provide it. Also, Carpenter doesn’t rely only on those scares to frighten you. There are a couple of tense, atmospheric scenes that are masterfully done. One moment that always stands out for me is Lauries slow walk over to her friend’s house. In most modern horror movies, they would show her leave, and then they would cut to her already standing on the porch of Annie’s house. Instead, Carpenter lets the whole scene play out, and the tension that builds on her way over there is remarkable.

If there’s one thing I’m not quite sure about, it’s the showdown, especially with Myers coming back again and again, which served as a template for all those unstoppable and immortal killers that came afterwards. Before that, as much as Dr. Loomis emphasizes the extraordinary nature of Myers as a threat to the people of Haddonfield, and all the talk about the Boogeyman, “Halloween” is pretty grounded – which for me simply works better for a slasher flick where a relentless killer is on the loose. That’s a rather down-to-earth concept, one that asks you to put yourself in the position of the victims, but as soon as it gets (seemingly) supernatural, I’m incapable of taking it serious any more. Also, after being a rather sensible and competent final girl, the showdown makes Laurie look incredibly stupid sometimes, like when she – while in pursuit by Myers – runs back to the house where the children are sleeping (Babysitter of the year!), or when she drops the knife next to a seemingly dead Myers AGAIN. Also, as masterfully as the shot of his second resurrection is set up, with Laurie in the foreground, eyes to the camera, and Myers rising in the back, the end result is not scary, but comical. Which might have been the intention, but I would have preferred a more frightening and terrifying approach. Other than that, the showdown – and the movie in general – still works incredibly well.
9/10


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Prelude to /slash #2: Suspiria

Posted on September 10, 2014 by cornholio1980

SuspiriaSuspiria
Italy 1977
Written by Dario Argento & Daria Nicolodi
Directed by Dario Argento

Dario Argento was the guest at this years /slash 1/2-festival in May. However, I hadn’t actually seen any of his movies yet at that time (I only knew his “Masters of Horror”-segment “Jenifer”) – which also means that I got introduced to his work with “Dracula 3D”. What a way to start! The horror retrospective at the Filmmuseum gave me the chance to catch up on two of his most beloved classics. I’m happy to report that I won’t need my “Blasphemy Alert”-meme this time, because right from the start, I fell in love with “Suspiria”.

Now I get that this is a movie that, strangely enough, is not universally praised, but it was just right down my alley. Right from the start, this feels like a weird, surreal and genuinely scary nightmare, with that loud and catchy main theme that terrorizes your ears (in a good, uncomfortable, way), the intense colors and gorgeous visuals, Suzies strange arrival in Germany, the pouring rain, the surreal sets… this is definitely one of the most gorgeous and unique looking horror movies that I’ve seen in my life. I also love the first kill; it’s so over the top! “Overkill” in the truest sense of the word. Also, right from the beginning Argento manages to make you feel uneasy, and when he amps up the tension, “Suspiria” is really scary.

It helps that pretty much from her first scene, I developed a crush on 1977s Jessica Harper. What a cute gal. I also really loved the slow buildup. After the nightmarish introduction, we get a chance to ease into the movie and get to know Suzy and the other girls at the dance academy. However, the next strange or downright terrifying scene is never too far away. Besides the great introduction and that unforgettable first kill, the standouts for me were the death of the blind piano player (where Argento uses wide angles to show that he’s completely alone on this huge plaza, which makes him look even more helpless and the situation that he’s in more dire), the scene in the dormitory, Saras escape attempt, and the finale.

There are a couple of things that I didn’t like that much. I’m not the biggest fan of horror movies about witches. When I watch an english movie with it’s original language track, I’m not used to dubbing, thus I found it a little distracting sometimes. And the exposition scene near the end is a little long; it brings the movie to a complete stop for 5+ minutes, and all the tension that was building up before evaporates. Argento does his best to make it look interesting, by using unusual angles, but I think it would have been better if they had found a way to break it down into more segments/reveals, instead of this one long scene where you get hit with all this information. However, those are all minor complaints that barely took anything away from my enjoyment of the movie.
9/10


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Prelude to /slash #1: Night of the Living Dead

Posted on September 9, 2014 by cornholio1980

(Aside 1: Concerning “Under the Skin”: Since my review’s long overdue anyway, I thought it would be nice to also read the book, and do a double review of the movie and the novel. Since I gotta read it first, though [Duh.], it’s very likely that it won’t go online until after this years /slash Filmfestival).

(Aside 2: While I told you a while back not do expect too many updates on this blog this year [the two big film festivals notwithstanding], shortly afterwards the Austrian Filmmuseum announced a huge horror retrospective; thus, I decided to jump at the opportunity to watch some classic horror movies on the big screen. Some of them I’ve seen before, most of them I haven’t, and all of them will be discussed on this blog. Also, there are 2-3 movies that I plan on watching before the /slash Filmfestival in order to prepare myself for sequels. Expect reviews for them too before the /slash 2014 starts on Sept. 19th.)

(Aside 3: To prepare myself for the upcoming /slash Filmfestival, I’m trying out a new review layout. What do you think?)

(Aside 4: Sorry about all those asides…)

Blasphemy Alert

Night of the Living DeadNight of the Living Dead_big
USA 1968
Written by John A. Russo & George A. Romero
Directed by George A. Romero

“Night of the Living Dead” started off this years “Land of the Dead”-horror-retrospective at the Filmmuseum. It’s one of the movies that I have actually seen before once, more than 10 years ago, and I remember quite liking it back then. Now… I know. It’s a classic, revolutionary, the one that started it all, zombie-movie-wise, and so on. But I’m sorry, I think that it’s not all that it’s made out to be.

Now I know what you’re going to say:
But it’s OLD!
True that. Well, kind of. I mean, it’s not like it’s from the 50s, or something. It LOOKS like it’s from the 50s, but it’s not. It’s actually from the same year as Stanley Kubricks fucking “2001: A Space Odyssey”, a movie that still looks better than 80% of the movies that are coming out today. I have seen my fair share of older movies, and there are quite a few that hold up really well. “Night of the Living Dead” isn’t one of them.

But it’s LOW-BUDGET!
True that. Well, kind of. I mean, yes, $114.000 (if the estimated budget figure at the IMDB can be trusted) is not a whole lot of dough, not even back then. But for a movie like this, it’s also not unreasonably low, either. If you take inflation into account, that’s roundabout $780.000 by todays standard. I have seen movies that were shot for less that looked better.

Look, it’s not like I don’t take all those things into account. I do. I just don’t think that because it’s a) old and b) cheap you should give it a pass right away. Otherwise “Plan 9 from Outer Space” would be a masterpiece too, right? And many of the things that bugged me are not directly related to age or budget anyway. So please hear me out while I discuss the things that I didn’t really like about it.

1.) Barbra
She’s such a useless and pointless character. As great as “Night of the Living Dead” is race-wise, as shameful it is when it comes to gender. Once her husband brother* get’s killed, she’s in a constant state of shock, switching between catatonic and hysterical.

2.) The Acting
The acting is all over the place. While Duane Jones is great in the lead, Keith Wayne is absolutely terrible. He’s simply reading off his lines without any sense of timing, emotion or drama. I’ve seen better and more natural acting in porn.

3.) Night and Day of the Living Dead
Now I get it, this is a point were budget definitely comes into play, but come on. If you have a movie called “Night of the Living Dead” where people watch live news reports, and their on-site coverage was obviously shot in broad daylight, it gets silly. That really took me out of the movie.

4.) SCAS (Stupid characters acting stupidly).
Granted, that’s a very common problem with horror movies, but just because somethings common doesn’t mean that you can’t/shouldn’t point it out. Wether it’s the whole fuel desaster where they actually set the car on fire, or the mum that let’s herself get stabbed to death without any resistance whatsoever, NOTLD unfortunately is one of those movies with people where you’re actually glad when they die, so they cannot spread their stupidity throughout the gene pool.

Now, please don’t get me wrong. Despite those flaws, I’m still not oblivious to the great influence this movie had, and apart from those problems I quite enjoyed it (again). I love the setting, with this very different group of people, stuck together in this tight space, with an unrelenting and seemingly unstoppable force on the outside. The tension that builds, and the conflicts between those that are stuck in this less-than-ideal situation. Ben is a gread lead(er), and I love the fact that they cast an african-american actor as the hero of the movie, especially considering the times this was shot. Despite my complaint about the constant night-and-day-shifts, I think that the news reports do a great job to make the movie seem plausible. And I love love love the ending, which always leaves me uncertain [SPOILER] if the guy really thought that he shot a zombie, of if he did kill Ben on purpose, for racial reasons [/SPOILER]. I just don’t think it’s quite the unimpeachable masterpiece it’s made out to be. Please don’t shoot me in the head or anything…
5/10


IMDB

* PS: Thanks to Wayne Malin for pointing out that mistake! 🙂

Posted in cinema 2014, movie reviews | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments