No one will be spared. Nuclear holocaust isn't for the faint of heart.
"Threads" is a devastating, and highly realistic, depiction of what the effects of a nuclear exchange between the superpowers might look like. It's a masterstroke of shock-therapy, the ultimate horror that humankind is capable of, put on film without any comic or romantic relief. Regardless if you watch it just for the thrills - it will teach you a lesson, or two.
More darkness would mean just black frames throughout: "Demons" is the scariest samurai movie ever made.
In mesmerizing black and white images, at a slow pace, it tells a simple story of betrayal and revenge, in a traditional Japanese setting. But beware, once the abyss has opened, "Demons" goes all the way. It's a nightmare of pain and rage, put on film in the most elegant ways. Hauntingly beautiful and shockingly dark - masterclass cinema!
Great Terminator design, before more detail and new head appearance was added by use of CGI. This look was never meant to be final. But it's dark and menacing nonetheless, reminiscent of the bleak style of "Shock Waves" (1977) or "Outpost" (2008). Notice the sloppy neck-to-shoulders situation of the mask - intentional or not, it makes perfect sense for an early, rugged humanoid Terminator model. Also, the motion-capture dot-suit is visible underneath the costume.
Nice shot from (semi-)behind the scenes of "Terminator Salvation", and it would actually be a very intriguing idea to explore a more decayed, "dead" Terminator design. Maybe something focused on the development of the T-600? Or a last-ditch war effort, where the earliest, cheapest models are sent into battle?
Ken Wiederhorn's super chilling Nazi zombie classic, featuring Brooke Adams in a major, and the legendary Peter Cushing in a minor role.
Very creepy 1977 movie "Shock Waves" wasn't the biggest success on initial release, but has since become a cult classic, and quite rightfully so. It's grindhouse cinema at its best. Exploitative, speculative, low-budget, gritty, bleak. The focus is less on the big action, but more on the nightmarish, claustrophobic situation of being trapped on a island, desperately trying to escape inevitable doom.
As you can see in the preview picture, the Nazi soldiers look amazingly ghoulish. "Shock Waves" has a unique atmosphere, and is probably best watched late at night.
Bring your body bags: George A. Romero's chilling vision of the TRIXIE virus disintegrating society, and humankind eliminating itself.
The gritty original "The Crazies" movie from 1973 is a low-budget production with a big scope. The similarities to the later, and more dynamic "Dawn Of The Dead" (1978) are obvious. But "The Crazies" is more realistic, as there are no undead, and it creates an even bigger picture of how humankind handles the catastrophe.
A cult classic of outbreak-horror, "The Crazies" is an analytic dissection of social mechanics under extreme stress, and a template for many zombie movies to come. It's not a perfect production, but still a highly thought provoking and exciting thriller - essential viewing!
Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy" is an essential piece of literature that has inspired countless other works. The first cantica (section, "song"), titled "Inferno", has been adapted many times in film. The 1911 version, directed by Francesco Bertolini, Adolfo Padovan, and Giuseppe De Liguoro, is the earliest of them.
If you're new to very old films, you'll be surprised by the richness and boldness some of these silent, black-and-white movies put on screen. "L'Inferno" was a big production, and a financial success. It's an important piece of film history, but also an impressive depiction of the underworld. Moral standards and technical possibilities were a little different back in the early 20th century, cinema was in its infancy, but that doesn't necessarily mean there's a lot of holding
back.
To this day, the imagery in "L'Inferno" is stunning, with beautifully decorated sets, strong use of light and shadow, inventive camera tricks and picture composition, and most of all an - obviously - far more traditional understanding of the rules and appearance of good and evil. It's more of a fresco on a church wall come alive, than the dynamic rush of modern horror movies. All of that combined makes "L'Inferno" an interesting, mesmerizing, and actually pretty creepy watch, both for the historian, and the horror geek. Maybe even for the casual viewer, who will be enlightened by its unfamiliar, sweet bizarreness.
It's 1943, Germany is a fascist country, World War II is raging, and businessman Oskar Schindler makes good profit of the situation. As the prosecution of Jews reaches his workforce, he begins to realize the humanitarian catastrophe that is going on, and his motivation turns from money to salvation.
Steven Spielberg is Jewish, and one of the best movie directors of our time. With "Schindler's List", he knows what he's talking about, and he has the skills and the means to create a movie that meets the highest standards in every regard. As a result, "Schindler's List" is a technically perfect production, and a deeply moving experience.
In it, we witness some of the numbingly atrocious practices carried out by Nazi officials and sympathisers, and the transformation of a pure businessman into an empathic, unselfish saviour. The depiction of the Nazi regime is scarily realistic, on all levels, with Ralph Fiennes giving a chilling portrayal of SS Commander Amon Göth. It goes hand in hand with the oppositional personal transformation of Oskar Schindler, played by Liam Neeson. The characterization of Schindler, a man between the lines, is handled with great care and precision. The acting in this movie is flawless, down to the last extra that has only seconds of screen time.
Writing, lighting, set pieces, filming, editing - there's not a single frame in "Schindler's List" that feels wrong or weak. It's a visual feast in black and white, mimicking the style of 1940s cinema, but all elements of the film - successfully - serve one purpose: Tell the story. And it is a profound story that is full of horror, but also full of compassion and hope.
"Schindler's List" is a brilliant, outstanding movie. It has a bit of a flaw, though, the same way "Saving Private Ryan" (1998) has: It can't compete with reality. When millions are dying, there is no cherry picking. A historical background such as this will always be overwhelming, and putting an individual story of heroism at its center has potential to create distortion. In reality, for the vast majority of victims, there was no one there to step in and help. The situation in the movie is very bleak, but in reality, for 99.9% of those affected, it was even bleaker. If a director chooses to direct a movie about a serious, decisive historical event, his work will be, and has to be, judged in comparison to actual historic fact. Artistic freedom, even if used with great virtuosity, can be inherently inadequate.
Given the sensitive subject matter, that is inherently problematic to approach, "Schindler's List" is still, or maybe precisely therefore, an astonishing achievement. While the movie does focus on individuals, it also manages to tie all the threads together, completing a big picture that is, in an cinematic sense, actually adequate to reality. We must not forget that it's still a dramatization, and there is a little bit of fiction in "Schindler's List" - but the end result is still so accurate, and so coherent, that there's just no point in arguing.
"Schindler's List" is a massive success, both in terms of art and education.
Passionate Shakespeare actor Edward Lionheart is driven to suicide
by critics panning his skills. But with the help of some local vagrants,
he survives, and is back for some literally shakespearean revenge...
Yeah, this is gonna hurt. Very much like Dr.
Phibes did just two years earlier, Mr. Lionheart has prepared everything
for his sinister goals. Douglas Hickox' grotesque classic "Theatre of Blood" is Shakespeare all over the place, it's British to the utmost, it's got Vincent Price, and the murders are outrageous.
The story and style
of the film are as satirical and sarcastic as they are tragic, dark, and
bizarre. There is a seriously sinister undertone to it, very much unlike the colorful Hammer Studios productions, or Roger Corman's E. A. Poe adaptations (many of which feature Vincent Price in the lead role), of the 1960s. Set in the modern city of London, with concrete office buildings and dirty backstreets, the character of Edward Lionheart seems like a relic of a forgotten art. "Theatre of Blood" has an strong element of aging, of "zeitgeist" that has just moved on, creating a bleak, sobering underlying mood.
Vincent Price plays Lionheart with almost touching precision, Diana Riggs'
acting is spot on - the entire cast is made of British stage trained
actors. Director Douglas Hickox, at the time, had more than 20 years of experience in
the industry. "Theater of Blood" really has some substantial quality. But it's not a "big" production, there are no vibrant shots, there's very limited depiction of an outside world, etc. It's more like a supersized intimate play of a dark crime story, with some quite nasty, and quite amusingly bizarre scenes.
"Theatre of Blood" is a rare blend of British black humor,
in fact some of the blackest ever, serious B-horror-movie, raw stage performance, and social satire - and it's pretty
good at each of its ingredients. The somehow relatable, tragic struggle of Lionheart versus the establishment gives the movie a strong, meaningful backbone, on top of which the dark and grotesque events make sense, and make you choke.
"Not to be" has rarely
been that much stomach-turning fun.
Verdict: Very British, very black, very humor. 7.5/10
The Montellis move into an old house that soon shows
scary signs of the supernatural. Or is it just the anger and fear of its
new inhabitants?
"Amityville II: The Possession", based
on the book "Murder in Amityville" (1979) by Hans Holzer, gives us a
little bit of insight into the origins of "The Amityville Horror"
(1979). Evil spirits have taken hold of the old mansion, but it's a bit
of a guessing game where they actually come from. The Montelli family
isn't your perfect TV family, esp. the dad is a deeply tormented person.
Everything spirals increasingly out of control, and both visually and
audibly the movie takes the viewer on quite a journey.
There's a
priest and some exorcism, there's gore and a little bit of slime, a
gothic basement, some monstrous transformation, a bit of sleaziness...
When some green and red lights show up, you can't help but think "Bava!
Italy!" - and indeed, director Damiano Damiani is Italian, and has
directed a lot of Italian crime movies, meaning gialli, so it's
no big surprise that "Amityville II" has a somehow different feel to it
than the slightly more ethereal "Amityville Horror". There are
similarities to the unhinged "Patrick Still Lives" (1980), but
"Amityville II" is less gory, and keeps the sleaze at far less
outrageous levels.
Overall, the impression is a little more
blunt than "Amityville Horror". Some of the special effects are quite
obvious, the characters are a little less detailed, and "Amityville II"
chooses some more visceral visuals, where its predecessor would go for
more mysticism.
Is it fun to watch? Yes, it is. Seeing Burt
Young in a movie is always enjoyable, the child actors are convincing,
and the rest of the cast gives a solid and passionate performance, too.
Lalo Schifrin provides a great soundtrack, some scenes are creepy, some
are reasonably funny, there's some interesting cinematography here and
there, and the pacing of the events easily keeps you occupied.
The
examination of the dysfunctional family falls a bit flat on its face,
and there's a plot-hole or two - but if you're looking for some cheap
thrills, you get a nice, somehow spooky, not too profound, little
haunted house flick.
Verdict: Closer to cinecitta than to Amityville. 5/10
