Director: Sôichi Umezawa. Starring. Kyôka Takeda , Momoka Sugimoto , Ena Fujita , Kanji Tsuda. Japan. 1h 21m.
I used to be blown away by Japanese horror, going through the Tartan Horror series with much glee as it was miles apart from the slowdown that was occurring with its Western counterpart. with the fresh of breath air that the creepy tales sprung upon me, eventually I started noticing a huge split between genuine Japanese Horror and that fringe area which incorporated their unique humor, gore, body horror and sprays of blood. After a while I let things run their course, on returning I was gobsmacked by the array of mundane items which the Japanese has found a way to make scary! Continue reading Chi o sû nendo / Vampire Clay (2017)→
Director: Mark Pavia Starring: Miguel Ferrer, Julie Entwisle, Dan Monahan, Michael H. Moss USA. 1h 37m.
I’ve never been all that interested in Stephen King novels, I’ve tried reading a few but I’m just not into his writing style, but the adaptations of his books do impress me from time to time, sadly this one had gone unnoticed for quite some time but I’m catching up so bear with me. I had seen a majority of this film from various gifs over the years and never really paid them much attention, it’s not real secret what the film is about, the DVD cover has the creature on it, but still the mystery and chase in the film keeps the story alive and it’s totally engrossing.Inspired by a short story from King that featured in the Prime Evil collection of horror shorts, it had been cleverly adapted into a movie in a way which means it doesn’t feel as drawn out., than some of King’s epic retellings which seem to take up the best part of weekend to watch. This creepy vampire tale offers some mystery but points the finger at some real live blood thirsty monsters, i.e. journalists!
Director: Ted Nicolaou Starring: Jonathan Morris, David Gunn, Kirsten Cerre. Romania 1h 32m
This film fits in between Subspecies 3 and 4 transitioning the story and cast from the original subspecies formulaic structure into something a little more .. a la Interview with a Vampire (1994). This slight detour from the excellent Subspecies series which featured the master vampire Radu and his tiny minions, the blood stone has been abandoned and the strange iconic atmosphere has been up scaled into something more gothic and misty.Continue reading Vampire Journals (1997)→
Soooo.. it was a long night, I did get started early, straight in and onto Law(n) and Order, I’m slowly working through the Boxset, no idea why I find it so thrilling lately but I do…
So after that conundrum I got back to the movies..
I started watching this first movie at the weekend but it go so boring I stopped and I got back to it today… and it didn’t improve…
*Gray Lady (2017)A seasoned police officer loses his sister and wife to the same criminal mastermind while on a respite he carries on his investigations into their murders on the island of Nantucket, going back to his origins uncovers more than he bargained for. There are hints of a deep and tangled web of treachery but it’s so lame, there were no shockers or twists as everything is lovingly sign posted and predictable is theme to this flick. being distributed by Anchor Bay I was expecting something outstanding in some way but I didn’t know they started shoveling shit.. I must admit I was hoping for a ghost story, but it turned out to be a bit of a family feud started over a tragic misunderstanding .As the details unraveled instead of the film becoming more interesting I just lost the ability to give a shit. Actor turned Director John Shea hasn’t done anything since Southie (1998) despite his cameo in this film he should stick to acting. The funniest aspect of the film for me how everyone is a look alike to someone awesome, the lead detective and all round good guy Eric Dane looks like a poor relation to William Petersen and the rough and ready rouge of the island Chris Meyer looks incredibly like a chubby Karl Urban2/10Continue reading Last Night’s Movies 24.07.2017→
Director: Kathryn Bigelow Starring: Adrian Pasdar, Jenny Wright, Lance Henriksen, Bill Paxton. Janette Goldstein, Joshua John Miller. USA. 1h 34m.
Famed for being one of the few vampire flicks never to mention vampires, Near Dark is more than just your average vampire flick, it’s a dusty road trip from hell with some ancient and amusing characters who just happen to drink blood. Strangely his romantic horror is never really all that scary but is serious enough to unleash some tough alternative ideas into the vampire genre, but between the hard luck story, the power struggles and the endless road there’s a hint of comedy albeit it dark and some iconic vamps emerge forever etched in our memories.
There is no doubt that this film comes from the south, everything about it drips gravy and biscuits. Caleb (Adrian Pasdar) is a young farmer’s son, who meets a beautiful drifter Mae (Jenny Wright) who changes his life after she bites him and he’s forced to join a nomadic group of vampires who are quite happy slaying their way across America. Continue reading Near Dark (1987)→
If you’ve ever read my blog, you’ll know I’m a weakling for black and white movies and I can’t mention Vampyr (1932) without ranting on about the version with the the soundtrack lovingly created by virtuosis of Year of No Light (https://yearofnolight.bandcamp.com) which adds a whole new level of atmosphere and really enhances the movie to no end…
Now because I have no life and live for movies, I am going to get really geeky and suggest 5 movies that could possibly benefit from a darker and more powerful sound track. To be honest I don’t know why bands and fans don’t really score more films, obviously silent ones are easier and there are plenty more of those to do… hint hint!!
Atmospheric music generally perceived as….
“Atmospheric black metal is a sub-genre of black metal which relies on heavy incorporation of atmospheric, sometimes even dreamy textures, therefore moving away from its parent into a less aggressive direction. Atmospheric black metal often features synthesizers or classical instrumentation, typically for melody or ethereal “shimmering” over the wall of sound provided by the guitars. The music is usually slow to mid paced with rare blast beat usage, without any abrupt changes and generally features slowly developing, sometimes repetitive melodies and riffs, thus providing another notable distinction from its parent and other black metal sub-genres. Subject matter usually concerns nature, folklore, mythology, and personal introspection.”
Undisputed 4 –has finally started releasing pictures and it’s looking impressive, it’s strange but the first news I had of the completion came from a bodybuilding YouTube channel, one of the massive guys was being interviewed and mentioned that he had just finished filming for Undisputed 4, I almost wept. I will be bouncing around in the cinema queue to see this.
Nina Simone Upcoming Movie – So much controversy about the upcoming Nina Simone movie as no one, including ??? believes she’s right for the part. But while this is big news and is impacting on a lot of people who agree, the film will still go ahead, and people will still go and watch it.. and so the Hollywood machine keeps on rolling. It does raise a lot of questions about who is really the best person to act in a biopic???? how much freedom do we give as “the Audience”.. to be honest, not a lot. Only last month i was quite disappointed by the Life (2015) film not only because the film was bland but I thought it could have been massively improved if James Dean actually looked like James Dean, but would the film have been better if the lead was given to an impersonator or lookalike? I feel an article coming on… But to be honest I don’t fully understand the fuss, although my choice would be Viola Davis .
Barbarella – It looks like there is going to be a remake of one of my all time favourite films, Barbarella!! Oh man when will they leave things alone?!? It’s not something I’m ever going to rush out to see, but I do wonder what the figures would look like on new releases if all of the remakes were not counted.
Movie Reviews /Quick Flick Reviews – I think I have the hang of these mini reviews now, although I did miss a couple of days this month I’ve done well in posting (nearly) everyday.
I will be updating the Links page pretty soon I doubt I’ll get around to before I post this update though but I’m working on adding some awesome links to podcasts and some other interesting movie review sites.
I’ve been meaning to re watch this classic for a number of years, I remember watching it when I was likkle and not really understanding what it was all about and being black and white I don’t think my brain could really process what was going on.
So it was on the to purchase an watch list, and I finally made it there and I feel that I’ve cheated myself. It’s utter perfection, the frivolity of the light and dark shadows, the imaginative camera work and effects, blending in shadows and, mystical dream sequences all depicting the haunting nature of the vampire. Before the myth was funnelled into Dracula or sexy vampires this falls into the category of folklore and when you go back to our more primal fears surrounding monsters things tend to be more eerie.
Carl Theodor Dreyer entertains a more nightmarish experience and doesn’t focus in on the vampire herself but instead the effects of vampirism. There are a lot of strange occult experiences going on in this film, originally penned by Sheridan La Fanu, who also brought us Camillaand In a Glass Darkly. It’s hard not to connect this with other classics like Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (1920) just due to the spectacular visuals but everything is much softer, almost playful like a fairy-tale but with a very dark story.
Originally written as a gothic novel it has all of toys firmly in the pram and chucks none away, coffins, skeletons, bats, ghosts, long black dresses, this is really what it was about. To be honest this film doesn’t even need a story it’s just brilliant enough to watch, and if you ever get the chance.. watch it with the soundtrack made by a band called Year of No LIght, there is a version on the tube but buy the album and play the two together.. it will blow your mind.
The Lost Boys (Comedy, Horror, 1987) (15) D: Joel Schumacher W: Jan fischer, James Heremias + C: Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Dianne West, bernard Hughes, Edward Herrmann, Keifer Sutherland, Kami Getz, Corey Fieldman, Jamison Newlander, Billy Wirth, Brooke McCarter, Alex Winter. 1h 37m. USA.
Synopsis : After moving to a new town, two brothers are convinced that the area is frequented by vampires.
TAGLINE : Sleep all day, Party all night, Never grow old, Never die, It’s fun to be a vampire. A slightly peculiar and spectacular vamp flick that drags the cloak off the old count and turns the charismatic seductive vampire of the past into a hot sexy leather clad hunks.
It’s hard to avoid linking this movie to the classic Bram Stoker novel that gave us huge insight into what we understand as Vampire folklore, but it’s also impossible not to mention the many similarities to another classic novel, Peter Pan. The boys are lost and will never grow up and are looking to invite other young hopefuls to be part of their little gang, the lost boys. The major difference is that these guys hang out in an amusement park and eat people.
While the attempt here is to be a horror movie, there is also a strong comedy element but really what the film achieves is updating the vampire ideology and making vamps sexy again for a new generation. No more counts trapped in castles riding in horse drawn coaches, these outcasts ride motorbikes and listen to the all the best tunes.
Starting out with a backdrop of Santa Cruz accompanied by Echo and the Bunnymen People are Strange, the film introduces the family that are now moving into the pleasantly daubed Murder Capital, Michael (Jason Patric) his little brother (Corey Haim) and their lovely mother Lucy (Diane West) move in with the rustic taxidermy enthusiast Grandpa (Bernard Hughes) makes friends with the Frog Brothers who run a comic shop, mum gets a job at a video store owned by Max (Edward Herrmann) and Michael falls in love with Star (Jami Gertz) and gets involved with the Lost Boys then things take a turn for the worse. Michael gets infected by the vampire virus and has to save himself and his family from a coven of vamps and the curse.
A lot of the movie just literally sets the scene of the coolest place on earth for any teenager, all day sun, comic and video stores on an amusement arcade and hot guys, great music and parties all the time, this place is literally never never land. But obviously there is something very sinister here, the hot guys just happen to be literally on the wild side. Along with all the cool attractive attractions the next biggest theme is the father figure, the boys are lost, the new kids on the block are moving with only their mother from what seems a messy divorce and everyone is lacking a father. See this is what happens to single moms your kids will fall in with a crowd of vampires! You’ve been warned. If i had to sum the movie up in a few scenes one would be the epic montage of the frog brothers and the young Corey arming up to fight the blood sucking vampires. The Frog Brothers have suspicions that their are vampires active in the town and are self proclaimed vampire hunters, gaining most of their knowledge from comic books. They assume to have found the leader of the vampires and aim to kill them to free Michael from the curse so they arm up with super soakers filled with holy water from the local church during a christening and lots of other amusing makeshift weapons in a Goonies style.
Another scene that really captures the essence of the movie is when Michael first falls in love with Star at a gig on the beach one night, while following her and trying to get his love thang on he’s suddenly confronted with the lost boys who are all lush and fine looking, asserting their dominance over Star and using peer pressure to shaming Michael into joining them.
Where are the police? throughout the whole film, you’ll notice missing children either on the boardwalk or on milk cartons and there is one brief altercation with a fat officer near the but all of the sleuthing and justice is all dealt with by the Frog Brotherswith help from everyone. For some reason the name Michael is said 118 times.. Now i know he’s one of the characters and is quite pivotal but FFS!
Music plays a huge part in this new chapter of blood suckers, while the theme track Cry Little Sister is haunting with a choir backing the rest of the soundtrack is from the MTV alternative including Run DMC, the Doors/Echo and the Bunnyman and INXS to name a few, songs that pretty much go with the look and feel of the boys themselves. Everyone comes across as a kool kat, there will be no oscars for the acting here but it will suffice. For me the best actor award would go to Grandpa as his scenes are probably the best, short but so very sweet. The best try awards would go to Kiefer and Jason. The development of these two pivotal characters was enhanced by these two talented young actors. This was the first film that the two Coreys did together and kicked off their lifelong friendship.There seems to be four generations at battle, Corey and the frog brothers, trying to be grown ups and dicking around, Michael, star and the lost boys
Joel Schumacher directed this horror soon after St Elmo’s Fire (1985) where a group of college kids are trying to deal with being young adults fresh out of school, this twins with other films such as the Breakfast Club (1985) and Pretty in Pink. (1986) The lost boys is a darker and more sinister group of individuals who are trying to deal with their own personal dilemma in a group. Despite taking on a horror movie after something as jovial as St Elmo, its no wonder that Lost Boys isn’t all that scary, in fact its hard to be scary where there are so many hot guys on the screen most of the time.
Moral of the story… I dunno.. don’t stray with the wild boys? Definitely don’t drink from an unmarked bottle and when it doubt always take advice from comic books! On a serious side the movie deals more with the tragic effects of broken families and the need to be within a group or family. I have to say that’s bullshit but the message is there.
Lost boys is definitely the horror film that your girlfriend is bound to know and be willing to watch, if you’re a fan of the 80’s it will bring back some memories and thrill you throughout.
The film works on many levels, the dynamics between the two brothers the rivalry with Michael and the gang, the motherly care and all of the “cool” stuff too, even the little twist at the end is pretty neat, but what doesn’t work is the horror. The film isn’t really all that scary, the kill scenes are a little lame but they get the story across and are more enjoyable than anything freaky. V: This was one of those films I grew up with and it probably influenced me more than I will admit. It’s almost an unwritten law that to be one of the goth kids you have to appreciate this film. It really did open up the modernization of a lot of the old style gothic tales, sadly no one manages to make it this hot and this perfect again but it’s good to aim high, every now and again someone comes close.
Rating: 8/10 R: Fright Night (1985), From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), Near Dark (1987) , Skinwalkers (2006), American Werewolf in London (1981), Streets of Fire (1984) , The Crow (1994) L:Selected Vamp Films, Modern Vampire movies
So I’m thinking of writing a few lists, articles about horror.. and then I realised that I’m not 100% sure if I have the correct definition. Fear and horror I personally think are aspects of the human psyche that are very personal and I don’t think there is a general definition but I’ll get things clear on what I will list as horror.. so lets investigate…
Lets see what the standard definition is!?
“Horror is a film genre seeking to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience’s primal fears. Horror films often feature scenes that startle the viewer; the macabre and the supernatural are frequent themes. Thus they may overlap with the fantasy, supernatural, and thriller genres.
Horror films often deal with the viewer’s nightmares, hidden fears, revulsions and terror of the unknown. Plots within the horror genre often involve the intrusion of an evil force, event, or personage, commonly of supernatural origin, into the everyday world. Prevalent elements include ghosts, aliens, vampires, werewolves, curses, satanism, demons, gore, torture, vicious animals, monsters, zombies, cannibals, and serial killers. Conversely, movies about the supernatural are not necessarily always horrific.”
Okay? got it!
One thing to consider is.. “what isn’t horror?” Well romantic comedies aren’t horror, although in their own way they generally scare the shite out of me. Anything which is appealing shouldn’t be classed as horror.
But it’s not to say horror can’t be romantic. I’m sure Dracula is still considered a gothic horror and it’s a timeless love story too, which brings me onto another factor.
There are very few movies which are just one genre, there are comedy horrors, romantic sci fi’s etc, all stories have many elements to them, it’s been that way since the early cave paintings I’m sure. So you’ll find it hard to pop a movie entirely into the horror bucket and nothing else.
Now for the crushing defeat, everyone is different, what scares you is very different to what scares me, for example my list of movies that make me sleep with the light on probably wouldn’t scare a majority of people in the slightest.
I guess you’d have to assume that it would be a subject that would horrify the general public, because we all know one person who is alternative and would love to be ripped apart by zombies, stalked by a killer, eaten by cannibals, or maybe my friend base is just very odd.
So lets go with the notion that it’s something that intends to repulse…
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