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Reviews
The Wraith (1986)
Entertaining & Laughable Fodder
This is not a great movie. Nor is it a good one. But for those looking for nothing more than entertainment, this will do.
Charlie Sheen stars as Jake, the reincarnation of some guy named Jamie, who rises from the dead and travels through space in a customized Turbo in order to avenge his death. Packard, the antagonist, along with his gang of stupendous engineers are eliminated one by one, and with great ease.
The story will surprise no one at any point. Things happen exactly as you'd expect, if you'd turn off your imagination. Photography is contrastingly well done, but gets stunned by poor editing. Just analyze the scene where Sheen and Fenn are peddling through the water: as soon as they have had their 'moment', Sheen turns and they both peddle away. The scene lasts too long and feels like amateur hour.
Story wise, nothing makes sense. It is exactly what you'd expect from an 80s B-movie starring Charlie Sheen. Packard kills any guy who so much as looks at his girl, and the whole town knows. Do the police even care? Nope. Too busy throwing around catchphrases like "I don't need a warrant when I have this badge".
Charlie Sheen gives such tranquilized performance that it makes me wonder what kind of synthetic drugs were in his system. Man, that speech about bullies and fear... not a single emotion detected! Sherilynn Fenn had trouble retorting after such a dull performance... Luckily, she steals every scene she's in just by being there. In Twin Peaks she was beautiful, here the universe's brightest stars have taken residence in her eyes. Unparallelled hotness! Nick Cassavetes (director of The Notebook!) stars as Packard, a downright evil sociopath. He has evil authority to him, to the point where watching recent interviews with him have a startling effect. And Randy Quaid is Randy Quaid. Always loony, always fun to watch. The inexplicable choice of trying to be taken serious at times whilst being a B-movie, takes the pace out of some scenes. But Randy, when given this dialogue, applies some much needed redneck enthusiasm, making the lines snappy and more digestible.
I had fun watching this, but I'm not giving the movie a pass - it being a B-movie in almost every way.
8MM 2 (2005)
Toilet Acting, Yet Captivating
I recently bought 8MM 1&2 together as a bundle. I felt like the first movie was an okay thriller, with some stellar performances by the accompanying cast. After watching the second movie, I was dazed as to the connection between parts 1 and 2: there is none. In the first movie, the protagonist goes looking for the fate of a young girl who ended up starring in a snuff film. His investigation finally leads to Dino Velvet, a deranged porn producer. The full title of the second part implies ("The Velvet Side of Hell")that we will be diving into Dino's debauched world a bit further, but that is not the case. In fact, there is not a single connection between this film and the first. As an explanation, I believe the production company wanted to make a few extra bucks and decided to give the film a more recognizable title.
When I checked the extras, the director seemed like an artistic person, but he was too gratuitous about his actors, to say the least. He kept going on about how they 'understood the script'. If that was the case, the two protagonists reflected it poorly. In scenes where they get a dramatic close-up, they lack depth and conviction. And instead of building character persona, their characters just seem to make random statements, having no real perspective or opinion of their own. For instance, when Tish is shown the photo's in the diner, she reacts with "we look seriously hot in these". Scenes later, she sees the photo's as a matter of life and death, stopping at nothing to keep them from the media.
The concluding scene tries to combine elements of Fincher's The Game with elements of Singer's The Usual Suspects, but comes off as a cheap imitation (how can Risa or the cop be alive?).
Nonetheless, it is an intriguing film to watch. The morbid underworld of the Hungarian porn industry is depicted goth-like with an ominous feel to it. As a shooting location, the Alhambra baths are amazing. This location is highlighted by the introduction of the scantily clad character Risa, portrayed by Zita Gorog. Watch this movie when you have already had desert, you are still full of the main course but you could go for a late night snack.
Artefacts (2007)
More Like A Filmschool Project
I bought this DVD out of the blue, I wanted to be surprised. The movie focuses on a young woman named Kate who finds out all of her friends and co-workers are murdered by their doubles. At no point this is a mystery for her because the doubles make no effort of concealing themselves for prying security cams. While the police seemingly makes no effort of solving the case (?) Kate runs for her life and tries to save as many friends as she can. The style of photography is guerilla at best, which gives the movie a documentary-like feeling, especially in the rare action scenes. Unfortunately, because of the underground touch, it never accomplishes to be scary or intensive. Also, the writers have forgotten to include any and all explanations as to where the doubles are coming from, who made/grew them, who are controlling them and why, what are the artefacts for, etc? I like my fair share of mystery and mysticism, but there is a difference between letting the viewer decide what to make of it him/herself, and just leaving everything open. I have to say that I am impressed with the time schedule, because the documentary points out that three guys did all the work in a little over a month for only 100,000 dollars. I also have to say that the acting felt a little staged. Kate appears to express total anxiety as her neutral emotional state and you basically care little whether she lives or dies. Overall, it feels more like you are watching a filmschool project rather than an actual movie.
Breaking Bad (2008)
an A for all departments
Since you are checking out Breaking Bad on IMDb, you already know this show so you are probably hooked on it as well as I am. For those still doubting when to start watching it, make it a top priority! Leave the groceries in the hallway, the goldfish can go on a diet, leave it all and go watch. It really is as good as everybody says it is. All the actors give Oscar-worthy performances, but you can tell the crew is giving their best as well. The interiors of the houses feel very real, whether it is the house of a drug addict or a middle-income family. I want to commend the casting agency for all the right picks, and the writers for developing believable story lines and making all the pieces fit even after five seasons. The actors also deserve a compliment for showing all aspects of their character's grief, including showing them on their most vulnerable and ugly moments.
Down in the Valley (2005)
Great Reminder of Norton's Talent
Last week, I walked past a toy store to find out they were having a fire sale of their DVD collection. When I entered the store, I came across some large crates with hundreds of dvds in them. Logically, many of them had an average IMDb score of between 1.0 and 3.0, but some had promising covers. I decided to take a leap of faith and bought everything that didn't seem less attractive than homework. Down in the Valley was one of the films I purchased. The first thing I noticed while watching it, was that from minute one, it has a grip on you. Norton is excellent as a hillbilly who looks innocent and charming, but whom you know hides a dark soul beneath that innocence. Later in the film, he meets up with the sexy Tobe, played by Evan Rachel Wood. They have a definite spark and the flirting feels very real. Norton also befriends her little brother, Lonnie, which invokes the torment of their father, a cop named Wade.
At first, the friction between Wade and Norton seems to be about a father-daughter thing, but soon you are treated to Norton's deceptive and manipulative tricks. This lead me to believe that Norton's character was a classic sadist, but it turns out he is delusional and lies all the time because he really believes he's a cowboy.
The acting is outstanding and it is nice to see Norton portraying a character once more who undergoes a grave psychological change and ends up doing something horrific (remember Primal Fear).
Just 3 things I can't figure out: Why was Norton forced to run from his hometown? Did he shoot someone there? Maybe his father, Joe? And why was the 2nd ending on the DVD not included in the movie? It was far better and more logical than committing suicide. And, why does the cover of the DVD looks like a dark horror/thriller, when this movie centers more on the feelings of a confused and delusional young man? Even though some plot points are a bit confusing, it is a wonderful movie with yet another commendable performance by actor David Morse.