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Phantasm (1979) (Third viewing)

You know the kind of film where you can see its flaws but you just can't bring yourself to care about any of them?

That's the kind of film that Phantasm is for me. And maybe one of the best things about it is just how rewarding it is on a rewatch. While the surreal horror plot is full of images and sequences that really capture your attention, it's the fragile relationship between Mike, Jody, and their friend Reggie that holds the heart of the movie.

This last time around I especially appreciated the nightmarish/dreamy quality of using the simple effect of so many scenes being windblown. An eerie whistle of wind and stark close-ups manage to turn simple shots into terrifying ones. Phantasm really exemplifies how horror on a budget can be so, so right, using practical effects and the power of suggestion to craft most of its most frightening sequences.

And undercutting the horror are some really relatable themes of fear, grief, and loss. The entire subplot of Mike's anxiety about his older brother leaving him--resulting in Mike obsessively stalking Jody whenever he leaves the house--gives an undercurrent of extra angst to the film. This is a movie without any traditionally comforting authority figures (unless you count the slightly sinister psychic Mike visits), and the sense that all Mike, Jody, and Reggie have is each other adds an emotional heft to every action sequence.

I often find that on rewatching a film, certain sequences will drag a bit, but every time I watch Phantasm I am all in. The Tall Man (pictured above) is a memorable villain, but the film wisely devotes plenty of runtime to the protagonist and making you incredibly invested in them. It's the kind of off-kilter, character-driven horror that really floats my boat.

I keep meaning to watch that, now I definitely will.



Forty years later and I still want a couple of those spheres



I've been meaning to watch this one for ages! Have you seen Force Majeure by the same director? An amazing dark comedy.

He's also got an interesting short film called Incident by a Bank that I liked.[/quote]

I did my usual and, when I like a film, checked out the directors back catalogue to see something I might like (suppose we all do!), will be giving Force Majeure a go for sure.



...will be giving Force Majeure a go for sure.
The American re-make, Downhill starring Will Ferrell and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, was released earlier this year. But definitely seek out the original.
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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra



Hello everybody!
SAW I






Whenever I see a movie where someone doesn't listen to his lawyer when it comes to keeping your yap shut when talking to the police it annoys the hell out of me. There's quite a bit of that in this. I know it's based on a true story and that's probably how Jewell was but it still annoys me and I always end up doing my Larry David impersonation, screaming "SHUT THE @#$% UP!" It's a decent movie with good acting, on par with what Clint's been putting out recently. Rockwell was good, as always and I'm really starting to like Nina Arianda who popped up on my radar in Goliath.





Phantasm (1979) (Third viewing)

I feel like it had the potential to be a great horror film, but they focused too much on things that weren't particularly interesting, and didn't fully capitalize on the most interesting and most terrifying elements of the movie. Overall it didn't really work for me.



The Postcard Killings (2020)


Absolutely nothing novel about this serial killer/detective film. Could have been 2 episodes of a TV Tec ("Baptiste" springs to mind). OK way to spend a rainy lockdown afternoon. Nothing objectionable but Jeffrey Dean Morgan should really be pushing himself for better than this pulp. Creaky dialogue and predictable.




I keep meaning to watch that, now I definitely will.
Just know that its particular vibe really isn't for everybody. I have made peace (SORT OF) with the fact that not everyone loves Phantasm.

I feel like it had the potential to be a great horror film, but they focused too much on things that weren't particularly interesting, and didn't fully capitalize on the most interesting and most terrifying elements of the movie. Overall it didn't really work for me.
Which parts did you think weren't interesting? See, I think that the film makes a wise choice in largely hinting at things but not exploring them too much. I think that it gets a lot out of implication. Things like the exact nature of the Tall Man, what exactly is being done with the corpses, etc, don't really matter. And for me it works because the film is so highly subjective to Mike's experience.

When I said that I can see its flaws but don't care, that's kind of what I mean. I can see how someone might see the film as slow or underwhelming, but I find it to be a perfect balance for my particular horror taste. It takes time to get to know the characters. In most other films, Reggie the ice cream truck driving best friend would be a throw-away character. But here his relationship to the brothers is much deeper than that.

As long as we can all agree that
WARNING: spoilers below
the close up of the young woman's face recurring and recurring and then turning into the Tall Man
is awesomely horrifying.

I did my usual and, when I like a film, checked out the directors back catalogue to see something I might like (suppose we all do!), will be giving Force Majeure a go for sure.
I didn't know much about it going in, and it was classified as a "drama" on the one site I looked at, and so it took me WAY too long to see it as a dark comedy. But once I got on the same frequency with it, I was laughing out loud.



The Raid (2011)






Quite simply an awesome action film. Some of the most impressive martial arts I've ever seen. Truly brutal fight scenes. There's not much in the way of plot or character development but there doesn't need to be: it's an action film pure and simple. As such you'll probably love it or hate it.


4/5 Stars.







Snooze factor = Zzz


[Snooze Factor Ratings]:
Z = didn't nod off at all
Zz = nearly nodded off but managed to stay alert
Zzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed
Zzzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed but nodded off again at the same point and therefore needed to go back a number of times before I got through it...
Zzzzz = nodded off and missed some or the rest of the film but was not interested enough to go back over it



The Raid (2011)

Quite simply an awesome action film. Some of the most impressive martial arts I've ever seen. Truly brutal fight scenes. There's not much in the way of plot or character development but there doesn't need to be: it's an action film pure and simple. As such you'll probably love it or hate it.


4/5 Stars.
I'll admit that around the last act I was starting to experience "stunt fatigue", but the fights are so meticulously choreographed and the athleticism on display is so amazing. It's high on my list of films I wish I'd seen on the big screen.








Pin (1988) - 6/10. This was certainly a little smarter than most of the "horror" movies from the 80s. Although not exactly sure, if this is a horror movie to begin with. I was able to figure out more or less what was going on around the 30 mins mark. But still a decent ride till the end. Found it in an "underrated horror" category on some site. Underrated maybe, but i take offense in calling this a horror.
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My Favorite Films








Pin (1988) - 6/10. This was certainly a little smarter than most of the "horror" movies from the 80s. Although not exactly sure, if this is a horror movie to begin with. I was able to figure out more or less what was going on around the 30 mins mark. But still a decent ride till the end. Found it in an "underrated horror" category on some site. Underrated maybe, but i take offense in calling this a horror.
It s not smarter than they live, and the changeling, and the entity, those are classics of the 80s



It s not smarter than they live, and the changeling, and the entity, those are classics of the 80s
Probably!



Pin (1988) - 6/10. This was certainly a little smarter than most of the "horror" movies from the 80s. Although not exactly sure, if this is a horror movie to begin with. I was able to figure out more or less what was going on around the 30 mins mark. But still a decent ride till the end. Found it in an "underrated horror" category on some site. Underrated maybe, but i take offense in calling this a horror.
I am a fan of Pin. I personally consider it a horror film, though one that leans into thriller territory.

My appreciation for Pin is on two fronts:

1) I like that the film is sex-positive in its own way. There's nothing wrong with someone being sexual, and the film shows how taking a negative or moralistic approach to healthy sexuality can actually lead someone down a disturbing path. The scene where Leon reads his work of fiction to the horrified boyfriend being a stand-out. It's rare in a horror film that a female character being excited about sex isn't an instant death sentence, and I liked that aspect of Ursula's character.

2) While what actually happens in the film might be kind of dubious from an actual medical/psychological standpoint, I did find it refreshing that what's happening with Leon is explicitly called out as mental illness. Even these days it's hard to find good mental health help for someone, and so I really empathized with Ursula--living and taking care of someone who clearly *needs* help, but she feels like she's stuck between doing nothing or putting him in a mental institution.

I did appreciate that the characters (especially Ursula and Stan) felt more real than most horror movie characters. I also liked that it's the kind of film where you can empathize with all of the characters and it doesn't reduce anyone to a one-dimensional "good guy" or "bad guy".

I can see how if it was sold as being way underrated it might give you expectations that were too high. I went into the film knowing nothing about it and was really pleasantly surprised. I dug its vibe and would probably rate it a 7 or 8.



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Love Meetings - 8/10
Very good if you're like me and like social documentaries. This is similar to another one of my favorites, "Place de la Republique" by Louis Malle.



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The Film Crew: Hollywood After Dark
The movie is dumb, but these guys are funny! I have never laughed out loud in a movie (at least not more than once or twice). I can only seem to get my laughs from stand-up comedy, and even that's rare. Before this, the only place I could find "fresh" humor was from certain Comment Sections (YouTube, for example).


Just imagine a group of three guys doing Beavis & Butthead, only watching movies instead of music videos.




You mean me? Kei's cousin?

Perfect Blue (1997) - First Time on YouTube

I'm still figuring out what to say about this movie. I kid you not, it vehemently bucks easy description and easy discussion. I'm still wondering if Kon was dropping acid while making it. It was one of those days where I was just bored and by chance, the entire English dub of Perfect Blue, named as a "slime tutorial," showed up in my recommendations on YouTube. Within the first few minutes, I found it a bit confusing what exactly was happening but it successfully drew me in and I found myself bearing witness to many strange things, not least of which included a man getting stabbed in his junk. ...yeah, it's just that kind of film. It's honestly kind of surprising that I watched it at all, given that I'd previously said there was no way I'd watch anything Satoshi Kon directed. Hearing someone say his films were "20x more awesome than" Spirited Away had put me in a pretty foul disposition towards the director since it's no well-kept secret how I feel about the legendary Hayao Miyazaki. But I decided to watch it with an open mind and found out I was wrong about Kon and it was a lot better than I thought it was gonna be. Sadayuki Murai's screenplay apparently changes a lot from Yoshikazu Takeuchi's novel but it still works. The animation is also pretty amazing, though I gotta admit I thought some of the characters—okay, a lot, most if not all of the male characters, and even one of the female characters in fact—were really frickin' ugly. It was in 720p so detail was a bit subdued—writing that seemed like it should have been more legible wasn't— and this was especially obvious on my smartphone's 1080p screen, but it looked way better than a 240p or 360p version would look and it didn't make the more unsettling imagery (which shows up quite often) any less unsettling. Granted, the story goes that some assclown destroyed the original negative and so this movie has been stuck with the same old master ever since the old DVD. Oh, well. It doesn't look as good as Akira or Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, or Castle in the Sky or Spirited Away but it could be a whole lot worse. The audio really got a chance to shine, however, since my smartphone has the option of DTS:X 3D Surround Sound with headphones or earbuds connected. I always have it turned on so it made the experience all the more involving and chilling. I'm going to be remembering Masahiro Ikumi's musical score for a long time and Virtual Mima is especially haunting. The dub is also solid. Bridget Hoffman is excellent as Mima Kirigoe, a 21-year-old pop idol who's decided to become an actress. So is Wendee Lee as Rumi Hidaka, Mima's manager whose motives aren't always clear. Also, watch out for Jamieson Price in a surprising turn as a sleazy photographer named Murano. Price in no way sounds like Colonel Shikishima here, though I guess that dub of Akira was a while after this. Everyone else is also up to par and the dub script is completely natural. It's definitely not for the faint of heart, but if you can handle it, it's worth watching. I certainly won't be coming back to it as much as my big-time favorites but I'm glad I gave it a shot with an open mind. Later.



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Perfect Blue (1997) - First Time on YouTube

I'm still figuring out what to say about this movie. I kid you not, it vehemently bucks easy description and easy discussion.
Ha, agreed!

It's honestly kind of surprising that I watched it at all, given that I'd previously said there was no way I'd watch anything Satoshi Kon directed.
Kon is maybe my favorite animation director, up there with Miyazaki. Losing him at such a young age was a real loss for the film community.

Of what I've seen of his, Perfect Blue is about in the middle. I have liked or loved everything I've seen of his. My favorites are probably Millennium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers, Paprika, and his TV series Paranoia Agent.

The animation is also pretty amazing, though I gotta admit I thought some of the characters—okay, a lot, most if not all of the male characters, and even one of the female characters in fact—were really frickin' ugly.
Kon's characters (and especially his male characters) look a lot more like "character actors". On the whole his characters aren't drawn as handsome and beautiful. Kon's films are often about pretty adult themes, and his characters often look grizzled or worn out.

I hope that you'll check out more of his work. He and Miyazaki are both immensely talented, unique voices in animation. I think it's a shame how often they are pitted against each other by fans, as if we can't be grateful that we get to have films like Tokyo Godfathers and Spirited Away at the same time.