Welcome to this week’s edition of my movie blog. Before I start, it’s been a busy and fun week for me. I didn’t get a chance to see Reign On Me but I promise, I will see that film and have thought on it, in the next edition. One reasons I’ve busy spending time at the Rhode Island International Horror Festival, as I volunteered there this past Thursday and Saturday. It was a fun time, as I got a chance to see some good movies at the festival including, Kreating Karloff. A documentary film about a young actor who bring the two of Universal’s iconic monsters that Karloff played for an sophisticated screen test and tribute to the icon him. Another film that I caught at I liked was underground filmmaker Mike Watt and his latest A Feast of Flesh. The film is about a young woman, who gets caughted up in the middle of a war between a group of vampires and a team of mercenaries. I thought this was good vampire horror film. I’ll go into more detail on the film when it comes out on DVD next month via Bloody Earth Pictures / E.I. Cinema. The best film I saw at the festival was Am I Evil. I’ll talk about the film later on in this edition.
Reviews
Rating System
5 Stars – Highly Recommended
4 Stars – Recommended
3 Stars – Good / Average Film
2 Stars – Disappointing Film
1 Stars – Totally Awful
In Theaters
Across The Universe
Across the Universe is the latest film from director Julie Taymor (Frida). The film is a sixties period piece set to the tone of the music from The Beatles. It's about a British dockworker named Jude (Jim Struggles) who travels to America to find his long lost estranged father working at a university. There he meets Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) a woman who ius the sister of a friend (Joe Anderson), he meets at the university. Later the two would fall in love. Soon their relationship is threaten, when Lucy joins a peace activist group after her brother was sent to Vietnam. Jude then becomes jealous and start's thinking that she's having an affair with the leader of the group. Can their relationship survive through the troubles they are having and would the film live up to my expectations? Bono, Joe Cocker and Eddie Izzard make cameo appearances, in the film. Thankfully, Across the Universe did live up to my expectations, as my most anticipated film of the fall. Director Julie Taymor makes this movie special through the visual images, as it kept me glued to the screen. The music in the film was great, especially during the music sequences that featured Joe Cocker and Bono. Also, the imagery was great to watch, as it was perfect for the big screen. The screenwriters did a really good job with the story. The characters were interesting and I liked the way the songs made senses with the movie as a whole because the movie doesn't work, if the songs don't fit the flow of the movie. The performances were very good, as there weren't many headlining stars in the film. Both Jim Struggles and Evan Rachel Wood gave good solid performances. They both had good chemistry and their performances kept the story going. Across the Universe is the most visual compelling musical film that I have seen, since Pink Floyd's The Wall. 5 Stars. Rated PG-13. 131 Mins.
Horrorfest 2007
Murder Party
Murder Party is one of the first releases on Magnolia Entertainment's new label Magnet Entertainment. The film is about an average person named Chris, who finds an invitation to a costume party on the eve of Halloween. Soon, he get more that he bargains for when he goes to the party, where a group of artists wants to kill him artistically for an art grant. But when the group starts to fall apart, Chris knows that must survive the chaos within the group to survive the night. Murder Party has played in various major festivals this year, including Slamdance, where it won the Audience Award and the South by Southwest film festival. This was a very enjoyable movie, as it was a very odd and entertaning horror film, but I can see how this played well at film festivals. The characters in the film were very interesting, as they didn't seem clichéd or boring. I liked that how the filmmakers made the hero of the story totally different from those in other horror films today. But the best part of the film was the last 20 minutes, as it grabbed my attention and was entertaining. The acting was good and there's plenty of gore shots that horror fans will enjoy. Murder Party is one of the weirdest and most original horror films out there this year. For More information on this film, you can goto www.myspace.com/murderparty07 . 4 Stars. Not Rated. 80 Mins.
Death By Engagement
Death By Engagment is about a man (Brandon Largent) who on his wedding day was left at the altar. He then begins to snap, as he becomes obsessed with the ring that he used to propose to his girlfriend, in which belongs to his mother (P.J. Soles). Soon he begins to leave a bloody trail in which a couple of detectives (Sascha Knopf, Aaron MacPherson) begin to follow the trail of the ring, which keeps bouncing from one unlucky bride to the next. Will the detectives be able stop this rampage before any more brides die? Christa Campbell (2001 Maniacs) and Ivari Limon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) also co-star in the film. Death by Engagement is very good film. I thought the story was interesting. I liked how the filmmakers connected the different stories to the ring, as it made the film interesting. The acting in the film was very good, as it made the film entertaining and watchable. The only drawback in the film was it didn't feel suspenseful enough for me, but nonetheless the acting and the story still made the film good to watch. For more information on this film, you can goto www.myspace.com/death_by_engagement 3.5 Stars. Not Rated. 99 Mins.
Am I Evil ?
Am I Evil is about a normal guy who has everything, a good relationship with his brother, a girlfriend who loves him and a best friend who likes to hang out with him. But unknown to everyone, he has an evil side that make him do horrifically things to fulfill his darkest fantasies. Am I Evil is one of the most disturbing and shocking underground horror films, I’ve ever seen. With that said, I thought this was also the best film, I saw at the Rhode Island International Horror Festival. A lot of the credit for this film has to go to director/writer Richard Terassi who won the Best Direcor award at the festival. He did a great job, by making this film a character study piece instead of a typical homicidal manic film. The direction of the film was great. I liked how he kept going back and forth with using color and black and white frames to give the film its eerie and disturbing feel. Also, I thought he really got very good performance from his lead actor, as he portraying this frightening character very well. The musical score of the film was very good, as it was another component to making this film terrifying. I hope someone in the movie distribution business will distribute this film on DVD as its a frightening psychological film that deserve to put out on store shelve. Am I Evil is a Psychological horror film that’s definitely not for the weak of heart. Am I Evil is currently playing on the festival circuit. For more information on this film, you can goto www.myspace.com/RichardTerassi. 4 Stars. Not Rated. 104Mins.
New Releases
DVD Pick of the Week
Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror
Planet Terror is the Robert Rodriguez’s half of the Grindhouse film that was released together with Death Proof, back in April. The film is about a virus that infects a small Texas Town turning people into zombies. It’s up to a group of survivors to find a way out of town before the zombies get them. The feature stars Rose McGowan (TV’s Charmed), Freddy Rodriguez (TV’s Six Feet Under), Marley Shelton, and Bruce Willis (Live Free or Die Hard). I thought it was a fun movie to watch. Planet Terror moves along at a good pace. I like the way that Rodriguez gives the feel of 60’s grindhouse films with the aged picture and the missing reel. The action sequences were action packed and very gory at times. He’s great at directing these action sequences, as they were entertaining. Marley Shelton’s character Dr Dakota Block kind of reminded me of the bride in Kill Bill vol. 1 &2. Also note that the Machete trailer that was apart of the Grindhouse film is at the beginning of this film. It was my favorite fake trailer of the bunch. Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror was fun to watching this film because it don’t take it’s self too seriously like other films from that era. 5 Stars. Not Rated. 104 Mins.
That’s it for this week’s edition of the movie blog. I’ll be back this weekend hopefully, after I celebrate my birthday with my reviews of Reign On Me, and the final two films in Horrorfest 2007. The Cradle and Dark Corner. Until then, have a good day.
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