A scary thing happened on the way to the Movie Forums - Horrorcrammers

I forgot the opening line.

02-07-24

A TALE OF TWO SISTERS - (2003)

It's not easy to describe A Tale of Two Sisters as it charts a course that wants you to not know exactly what's going on in a household where the only loving relationship occurs between the titular sisters. There's plenty of haunting occurring here, in a house that is sublimely designed to be haunted - I would not want to live there. Answers only come late - and the power they hit with depend on if you already suspect some of these answers, but in that sense Kim Jee-woon has inserted enough complexity into the screenplay to make the picture as a whole unguessable, even if some elements aren't. What I like is that it doesn't try hard to be spooky, but allows the dread to build naturally inside an unhappy home environment full of toxicity and rage. There's no peace, and as such we automatically assume the worst in every situation - apparition or whatever, it's not good. The ending is incredible - and really gives the entire film a massive boost that makes it one I'd like to see multiple times. Great on most fronts.

Udo Kier? : No

Jump Scare Meter : 6/10
Discomfort : 7/10
Art : 7/10
Weird : 8/10
Fun : 8/10
Interesting : 7/10
Enjoyable : 8/10
Exciting : 7/10

Overall : 7.5/10

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Remember - everything has an ending except hope, and sausages - they have two.
We miss you Takoma

Latest Review : Le Circle Rouge (1970)

Dead2009

Horror Movie Guru

02-07-24

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Last Movie Watched:Brooklyn 45 (2023).
Last TV Show Watched: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (S1:E1).

Wyldesyde19

The trick is not minding

02-09-24

I was looking at the Berlin Film festival Lineup and I noticed in the Retrospective section there a German Horror film called The German Chainsaw Massacre starring Udo Kier.
It was apparently known as Blackest Heart in the US.
Any of you familiar with this?
It title has my attention�.

PHOENIX74

I forgot the opening line.

02-10-24

THE GERMAN CHAINSAW MASSACRE - (1990)

Clara (Karina Fallenstein) kills her filthy androgynous East German husband and flees to the West during the period of German Reunification - but upon meeting up with her lover, they're set upon by a family of West German maniacs using East Germans as a source of cheap sausage meat. There's a lot of political commentary to hear amongst the screaming and slapstick comedy - every second scream is some kind of political quote, and obviously the entire concept is borrowing heavily from the manner Tobe Hooper used his breakthrough hit to make his own kind of comments in a less forthright and direct manner. Other than that it's absolute chaos with cheap gore galore and references to films such as Psycho (the maniac family's patriarch is a long dead ex-Nazi skeleton, hidden away and given voice Bates-style by another family member) - and I respect that it's an arthouse kind of splatter film about something concrete. Characters scream in this film when they don't even have to - deliberately trying to embody complete anarchy, but the film only runs for an hour plus credits, so it doesn't wear out it's welcome. Remember - "everything has an ending except hope, and sausages - they have two." Even at a time of celebration, the Germans had plenty of room for weary cynicism when it came to their leaders.

Udo Kier? : YES (+1)

Jump Scare Meter : 1/10
Discomfort : 6/10
Art : 9/10
Weird : 8/10
Fun : 6/10
Interesting : 6/10
Enjoyable : 6/10
Exciting : 4/10

Overall : 7/10

Wyldesyde19

The trick is not minding

02-10-24

Originally Posted by PHOENIX74

Ha! Perfect timing! I�m going to have to look this up!

Dead2009

Horror Movie Guru

02-11-24

Is that supposed to be some kind of TCM clone lol.

Wyldesyde19

The trick is not minding

02-11-24

Originally Posted by Dead2009

Is that supposed to be some kind of TCM clone lol.

It certainly sounds like it, yeah.

PHOENIX74

I forgot the opening line.

02-17-24

YOU WON'T BE ALONE - (2022)

A witch in 1800s Macedonia marks a 16-year-old mute girl who has been raised in a cave, apart from all humanity and the natural world. Now able to shapeshift after killing, this girl takes on the guise of various townspeople and discovers the beauty and pain of human existence. Lots and lots of entrails in this one - these witches feast on blood and the first one - "Old Maid Maria" is a burned up monster with an attitude. The film itself reminded me of Terrence Malick - there's poetry in the musings of Nevena (Sara Klimoska), who takes many different forms (including that of a women played by Noomi Rapace - who really wasn't in the movie for as long as I thought she would be.) This is horror with a purpose - to explore what it means to live from the perspective of an empty vessel and outsider. It really gives the impression of being an authentic vison of life in rural 19th Century Europe. If you like this kind of thing then you should take note and see it when you get a chance - it has some depth and is a surehanded debut by Goran Stolevski, who I'm sure we'll hear more of as time goes by.

Udo Kier? : No

Jump Scare Meter : 0/10
Discomfort : 6/10
Art : 7/10
Weird : 6/10
Fun : 7/10
Interesting : 7/10
Enjoyable : 8/10
Exciting : 6/10

Overall : 7/10

Dead2009

Horror Movie Guru

02-19-24

Stephen King Again Tweets Support for Shelved ‘Salem’s Lot’ Remake from Warner Bros.
https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/...m-warner-bros/

ThatDarnMKS

Registered User

02-25-24

Yo, Takoma. Tried to send you a PM but your inbox is full.

Also, Lisa Frankenstein is a fun horror comedy that blends Heathers with Frankenhooker. Worthy of the pun-ny title. Definitely will be a cult horror ala Jennifer�s Body in a few years.

Deschain

Registered User

02-25-24

Originally Posted by ThatDarnMKS

Glad to hear it�s good. It ended up on my radar because it�s directed by Robin Williams� daughter Zelda Williams. Looking forward to it.

ThatDarnMKS

Registered User

02-25-24

Originally Posted by Deschain

Glad to hear it�s good. It ended up on my radar because it�s directed by Robin Williams� daughter Zelda Williams. Looking forward to it.

It�s been pretty polarizing and while there�s some script wonk, Williams� direction is lively and stylish and Kathryn Newton is PERFECT.

PHOENIX74

I forgot the opening line.

02-26-24

TERRIFIED - (2017)

I have to go back and watch this Argentinian horror film again - there's a lot to recommend here, with plenty of great scenes and effects that do chill and are effective. So much so that it's a shame it doesn't cohere as a whole when you look at it from a distance. I'm sure this was made with bigger plans in mind, and so much attention has been paid to the scary visuals and direction that the overall story seems a little all over the place - horrifying things are happening in three houses very close by to each other in a Buenos Aires neighborhood. In one the rotting corpse of a child comes back to his mother, in another a man's wife is brutally killed when she flies into one wall after the other, dozens of times - in another a man disappears after recording an apparition. The explanation didn't really satisfy me, but overall I can't deny this horror film it's good points. Visuals and a great atmosphere. Plenty give it the thumbs up - and I give it a qualified thumbs up. The story connecting all of the tissue could have been neater, and more encompassing, instead of being haphazard. As I said though - it deserves a second shot, and I look forward to giving it one.

Udo Kier? : No

Jump Scare Meter : 4/10
Discomfort : 6/10
Art : 6/10
Weird : 7/10
Fun : 7/10
Interesting : 5/10
Enjoyable : 7/10
Exciting : 6/10

Overall : 6/10

Torgo

Mu-Tant

02-26-24

Originally Posted by ThatDarnMKS

Also, Lisa Frankenstein is a fun horror comedy that blends Heathers with Frankenhooker. Worthy of the pun-ny title. Definitely will be a cult horror ala Jennifer�s Body in a few years.

I enjoyed it as well. Wrote a little something about it, in fact...

Torgo

Mu-Tant

02-26-24

Lisa Frankenstein -

This pretty good horror comedy takes you to a rarely explored place in cinema lately: the 1980s. But seriously, its love of all things Goth and post-punk make it a little more niche than usual. I was surprised as you likely were to see Robin Williams' daughter Zelda at the helm, and while there's some awkwardness and not the good kind, there's a lot to admire in her direction. Kathryn Newton, who I like in Stranger Things, handles the lead role impressively, making her transition from sympathetic to well...not as she becomes power mad and blind to reality seamless. By the same token, I like that her victims/organ donors seem less and less deserving as the movie goes on. It also helps that Newton has palpable chemistry with Sprouse's Frankenstein, who is not too shabby either. They also produce some genuine laughs, as do Newton and her much more popular would-be sister, Taffy (Soberano). There's also the soundtrack, which is full of well-curated and timed needle drops from bands like The Chameleons and The Jesus and Mary Chain.

If you, like Lisa, were not "in" during high school and/or had to endure the same kind of boors she does, you likely had at least one revenge fantasy as well. If you had the power to make them happen, would it be more blessing than curse? Luckily, the movie lets you decide. Again, there are one too many cringe moments, and I don't mean the Michael Scott from The Office kind. They're more like your least favorite uncle saying grace on Thanksgiving kind. Also, speaking of Stranger Things, it's possible that Williams wanted some safety and reliability in her feature directorial debut where she could find it, but having Joe Chrest play the same kind of useless dad he does on that show seems tired. Other than that, it's a freaky and silly good time whether or not you still have the urge to dress in black. You should probably not do that while watching it, though: even though it's a movie, you will feel the New Orleans heat and humidity.

MovieFan1988

Registered User

02-26-24

Originally Posted by ThatDarnMKS

I've been seeing a lot of good reviews about this movie, IMDB and Letterboxd. I liked Katryn Newton in Freaky and I'm sure I'll like her in this as well. I can't wait to watch this when it comes on peacock which will probably be in April. It's also available for digital to buy or rent tomorrow on Amazon Prime and iTunes.

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Last edited by MovieFan1988; 1 week ago at 02:37 PM.

Dead2009

Horror Movie Guru

02-29-24

PHOENIX74

I forgot the opening line.

02-29-24

WOLFEN - (1981)

1981 was really the year of the wolf, what with The Howling and An American Werewolf in London also being released, both within three months of Wolfen coming to theaters. This isn't a werewolf movie though, Wolfen is a mystery/police procedural that focuses on Native American legend and spirituality. There's a lot of pretty neat biting done, with both hands and heads flying off in all directions - and in the meantime Albert Finney, Diane Venora, Gregory Hines and Tom Noonan trying to get to the bottom of matters. There's some nice photography in the barren South Bronx area of New York, which was in full 'urban decay' mode at the time. It has the look of a bombed out wasteland, and looks perfect for a horror location filming-wise. Finney was in his mid-40s, but looks old - and I wondered if that was down to hard-living or genes. Anyway, as a whole the movie has some interesting ideas and a solid screenplay, but it didn't grab me - I think it lacked a little excitement, and I think Finney was a strange choice as the lead in this. Still - if you love wolves, then you could do a lot worse. It embraces the whole spectrum of lore and meshes it with it's urban location - and that's worthy of some praise.

Udo Kier? : No

Jump Scare Meter : 2/10
Discomfort : 6/10
Art : 6/10
Weird : 7/10
Fun : 4/10
Interesting : 8/10
Enjoyable : 5/10
Exciting : 4/10

Overall : 6/10

Death Proof

I mainline Windex and horse tranquilizer

02-29-24

Originally Posted by PHOENIX74

WOLFEN - (1981)

**** yes - I LOVE this movie

Fun fact: The director, Michael Wadleigh, only directed one other movie: Woodstock.

He mainly worked as a cinematographer throughout his career.

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PHOENIX74