Tuesday, October 16, 2007

In Which We Once Again (Gladly) Set Ourselves Up for Failure

Let it be known here and now that I'm fully aware October is rearing its ugly head, which means it's once again time for me to attempt to review a given number of horror films, only to fall miserably short again.

Will that stop me from trying? HELLS NO!

So my modest goal this year is just to beat last year's grand total of 12 (I never finished my review of KAIRO (PULSE) and will probably fail again this year). As always, I'm currently taking requests: if there's a horror movie you love, or even a horror movie you hate and want to see if I hate it, too - let me know! My only guidelines are:
  1. It can't be a movie I've already reviewed on this site.
  2. It has to readily available - either at the local theater, rental house or on Netflix...I'm not afraid to spend a few bucks to see or purchase a flick, but I'm not going to shell out $39.99 for some Danish import with no subtitles.

I already have a few titles lined up that run the gamut of old, new, cult, foreign...you get the picture. Anyway, here's a little of what you can expect:

SEE...the sweat drip off my brow as I approach the end of October only to suddenly realize that once again MAD LOVE was watched and never written up, despite my overwhelming love for it!!!

HEAR...screams of anger and disgust as my wife walks in to find me huddled under the blankets watching TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE with my 4-month old son...again!!!

FEEL...the dripping sourness and exhaustion as I pound away on the keyboard at 3:30 in the morning before work trying to finish my review of THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE as my 5th cup of coffee slowly plays havoc with my digestive system!!!

Yup...should be fun.

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Hail Horror!

If revenge is a dish best served cold, then horror is best served during the fall. Someone somewhere said you never feel more alive than when you're dying, and Autumn seems to take that adage to heart, bursting forth in color and sound and scent until at last falling into the desolation of Winter.

And what better time to watch films whose sole purpose is to scare the pants off you, and remind you that you're still alive (at least for now, mwah ha ha ha...).

2007 offered up a big heaping slop of horror to pour through, so this year might find a lot of newer films compared to last year. However I'll try to make as large a mix as possible, and endeavor to bring to light a few films you may have forgotten about, or not given a fair shake to, maybe even know a beloved classic down a peg or two. As always, requests are welcome!

In the meantime, here is a linked list of the horror films reviewed in the past, in case you want some quick reference to something I may have already reviewed!



Some incredible, some just plain painful. Stay tuned to see what 2007 has to offer!

Scribbled by @ No comments:

In Which We Once Again (Gladly) Set Ourselves Up for Failure

Let it be known here and now that I'm fully aware October is rearing its ugly head, which means it's once again time for me to attempt to review a given number of horror films, only to fall miserably short again.

Will that stop me from trying? HELLS NO!

So my modest goal this year is just to beat last year's grand total of 12 (I never finished my review of KAIRO (PULSE) and will probably fail again this year). As always, I'm currently taking requests: if there's a horror movie you love, or even a horror movie you hate and want to see if I hate it, too - let me know! My only guidelines are:
  1. It can't be a movie I've already reviewed on this site.
  2. It has to readily available - either at the local theater, rental house or on Netflix...I'm not afraid to spend a few bucks to see or purchase a flick, but I'm not going to shell out $39.99 for some Danish import with no subtitles.

I already have a few titles lined up that run the gamut of old, new, cult, foreign...you get the picture. Anyway, here's a little of what you can expect:

SEE...the sweat drip off my brow as I approach the end of October only to suddenly realize that once again MAD LOVE was watched and never written up, despite my overwhelming love for it!!!

HEAR...screams of anger and disgust as my wife walks in to find me huddled under the blankets watching TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE with my 4-month old son...again!!!

FEEL...the dripping sourness and exhaustion as I pound away on the keyboard at 3:30 in the morning before work trying to finish my review of THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE as my 5th cup of coffee slowly plays havoc with my digestive system!!!

Yup...should be fun.

Scribbled by @ No comments:

Hail Horror!

If revenge is a dish best served cold, then horror is best served during the fall. Someone somewhere said you never feel more alive than when you're dying, and Autumn seems to take that adage to heart, bursting forth in color and sound and scent until at last falling into the desolation of Winter.

And what better time to watch films whose sole purpose is to scare the pants off you, and remind you that you're still alive (at least for now, mwah ha ha ha...).

2007 offered up a big heaping slop of horror to pour through, so this year might find a lot of newer films compared to last year. However I'll try to make as large a mix as possible, and endeavor to bring to light a few films you may have forgotten about, or not given a fair shake to, maybe even know a beloved classic down a peg or two. As always, requests are welcome!

In the meantime, here is a linked list of the horror films reviewed in the past, in case you want some quick reference to something I may have already reviewed!



Some incredible, some just plain painful. Stay tuned to see what 2007 has to offer!

Scribbled by @ No comments:

Monday, September 17, 2007

Once (2007)

Strip away the visual effects, the fancy camera work, the MTV editing, and you're for better or worse left with the essence of what makes a film truly work: the people on the screen and the story they tell.

Early on in the film ONCE the two main characters (simply called the Guy and the Girl) sit down in a music shop. The Guy, a vacuum repairman who wants to be known as a songwriter, softly explains the chord progression and melody of the his song to the Girl, a shy immigrant from the Czech Republic who cleans homes to make ends meet while dreaming of the days she would play piano. He begins to play, quietly at first as the Girl tentatively picks out a few notes on the piano. As the song progresses, the music becomes the story of the love that will blossom between these two people, echoing the twists and turns that make up the most extraordinary of loves. It's a hearbreakingingly beautiful scene, one of the best this year.

And all the more amazing when you consider that the acting is by two unknowns, indeed the people who were originally commissioned to just do the soundtrack. Glen Hansard of The Frames, an Irish indie-rock band, was assisting his friend, former bass player John Carney when a lack of funds turned into film magic. And that's really what this is: magic. Relaying solely on the music and performances of its leads, ONCE is at once a true and fantastical look at the funny turns love can take you in over the course of a week. It's to the credit of Hansard and his co-writer/co-star Marketa Irglova that the music tells the story of their love with such simple passion, unadorned by sweeping strings and sentimentality.

All the requisite romance items are on display: the "meet-cute" with a broken Hoover, the jaded music producer who is turned around by the innocence and beauty of the music, the quiet duet where love is proclaimed. And if like the best love songs the ending is bittersweet, the feeling you leave with is one to treasure. In a summer of sequels, robots and $200 million blockbusters, the best film of the year works with two voices, a vacuum, and a piano.

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