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Reviews
Midnight Movie (2008)
Ted Radford, a harbinger of God! (spoilers)
You have never seen a killer like this before. Meet Radford. He drills your heart out with a custom coned-shaped corkscrew. He attacks only when you're scared. He is half phantom, half slasher basically the best parts of Jason and Freddy combined. He wears a freakin human skull over his head. And oh yeah he can also pull a Pleasantville on you and jump in and out of the screen. Without a doubt this film pays homage to the 1970 grindhouse experience, but don't be fooled daring voyeurs, because in contrast this film reinvents what a killer can and cannot do. Radford's a digital ghost if that makes sense, a true villain for the twenty first century. Beware! Character wise Radford is as emotionally conflicted as Norman Bates: he's a director trying to be an actor trying to be a slasher, but who also loves his mommy. I'm a sick guy who likes to root for the killer because to me all blood thirsty slashers are actually angels in disguise. Rebekah Brandes' character has daddy issues which impede her from living her life, but luckily our angel is here to remedy that. For your entertainment and the expense of the lives of minor characters Rebekah learns to get over her fear of domestic violence. This is all very good, but not the films highlight. When the dust settles we get a twist so unexpected, that even to this day my mind is still spinning, and where Rebekah ends up would be something debated between horror fans for years. Rebekah enters the movie and rejoins all of Radford's victims. How is this possible? Is this world real? Did she time travel? Is she dreaming? What if the movie is somehow part of Radford's subconscious? Let the banter begin.
Bride Flight (2008)
The Antithesis to Atonement
Remember the old lady in Atonement? What if she led her life without regrets? What if she laid it all on the line before it was too late, before her sister died, before she grew old? Like the Oscar winning film, Bride Flight is about elders (we get three here) reflecting on their past when they reconvene at a funeral. The central elder, Ada, had a choice to make in her youth to either follow Frank (an Adonis of men, perhaps too good to be true, every woman's fantasy) or follow her husband Derk (essentially a Jerk, but represents stability, religion, and order). Ada chose to go with Derk, but in the third act of the movie she had an opportunity to undo her mistake. Where Atonement was about living with regret and sadness, Bride Flight is about living with regret, and then doing something about it. Ada runs off with Frank and puts it all on the line. This film should not go underneath the radar because it's not only a case study of human potential, but also a true cinematic feat.
How to Live Forever (2009)
We all think about death, therefore all should see this movie!
The movie is about Mark Wexler's search for purpose in a world full of commercialism and trivial meanderings. Here, the human condition is highlighted in interviews with the young and old, famous and humble, happy and melancholic; essentially the fragility of life is matched against our inherit fear of death. Thus, there is a strong sense of urgency in the film's message which dares its audience to get out of their seat and into life.
I gave this movie ten out of ten because of its eclectic cast which is dominated by those well into the later stages in life, and despite the inevitable grievances of aging, these characters never roll over, but embrace the opportunities and miracles in every stage of life.
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