Don't Look in the Basement (1973) Horror Asylum

Don't Look in the Basement (1973) - aka The Forgotten, Director S.F. Brownrigg takes a script written by Tim Pope and Thomas Pope and brings sort of on the nose story to the screen, but overall it lacks movement and the tension needed to make it a really good film. It is a story about a young psychiatric nurse Charlotte Beale (Rosie Holotik) arriving at her new job at Stevens Sanitarium. The dramatic irony is that Dr. Stevens (Michael Harvey) the man that has hired her, has been killed by one of the patients "the Judge" (Gene Ross) and another patient Geraldine Master (Annabelle Weenick) is posing as the new head of the sanitarium. Okay before you start giving me shit for spoiling the plot, stop. The premise is known to the audience right from the beginning of the film. Not only that the writers and director do very little to hide the subterfuge from the viewers. It really is the major flaw of the film that everything about the secret is not hidden in anyway. We know from the start and watch as Charlotte eventually figures it out.
  There is some really fine acting in this one, particularly co-lead Weenick who had a long career (1961-98) before her death in 2003 at the age of 78. She carries a lot of the emotion in the film as the control freak with the secret she does not want Charlotte to know. When the rest of the patients start unwinding and her position becomes threatened she does the only thing a mentally ill control freak can do and starts killing them off. Other character well played are Sam (Bill McGhee) who plays a lobotomized man child, and the Judge (Ross) playing an uptight rules obsessed patient.  The rest of the cast play there stereotypes, Harriot (Camilla Carr) obsessing over a doll like it was her baby. She also appeared in the 2015 Don't Look in the Basement 2. That film was directed by son of SF Brownrigg, Anthony  and uses several of the original locations.  Danny (Jessie Kirby) playing something of a screechy adult 11 yr old trickster. Jennifer a withdrawn moper with a dangerous side. Stg. Jaffee (Hugh Feagin) war veteran with a bad case of PTSD, Mrs. Callingham (Rhea MacAdams) an old lady with dementia, and Allyson(Betty Chandler) a sex and relationship obsessed woman looking to have a man "love" her, all the time and with borderline tendencies that keep that from happening. All are okay and make a hodgepodge of stereotypes that play off each other to create situation that Charlotte has to deal with. Gene Ross also had a long career and was in some notable films like Halloween 4 : The Return of Michael Myers and David Lynch's Lost Highway.
  Charlotte is slow on the uptake and can't see through the thin veal of sanity Masters is projecting which sets up a classic third act when all the hidden bodies are found and the true nature of the situation she is in is revealed. Even though she is technically the final girl she has very little agency in discovering the truth. Instead of being proactive and figuring out the weaknesses in the reality being presented to her she just goes along trying to deal with the situations that working with the mentally ill present. In the end it is really the patients inability to keep a secret more than anything Charlotte does that exposes the charade. Even then in a panic she tries to flee from the house, and in not finding an unlocked door ends up trapped in the basement. It is only Sam's decision to help her that she survives. We are left with her standing outside in the rain while the patients kill each other inside.Needless to say this is not really getting a recommendation on this blog. Although it is part of the early seventies horror I like it just doesn't have enough to it for me to give it a thumb's up.

Chattanooga Film Festival pt. 3

Chattanooga Film Festival pt.3 - On the final day of the festival I tried to cram as much in as I could. Here is what I had the pleasure to see before I ran out of time.


Disco Graveyard (2020) - My friend and Cool Cat Izzy Lee created a musical montage film that is asking some big question. Watching her growth as a film maker since the days when she was creating shorts programs at the Somerville Theatre has been a pleasure. She is so much a professional film maker and it shows in this short. Check her stuff out and of course, be wierd!


Fulci for Fake (2019) - I am a big fan of Lucio Fulci the film maker and have a pretty full collection of his movies. In this strangely structured documentary we learn more about his personal life while while also touching on the films of his career. The premise that seemed so strange to me was that of an actor who is going to play Fulci seeks out the important collaborators, family and family members to find out who the Man behind the movies was. I found that premise a bit awkward but the information I got about the films connected to his life events at the time of writing the films was intriguing. You can see the themes and emotions of his life being incorporated into each film. That was fascinating how the experiences the filmmaker was having directly showing up in his art. Isn't that what art is all about?.

Scare Package (2019) - So many clever horror ideas packed into Scare Package, it was just a pleasure to watch. Seven directors each taking a whack at a different sub-genre of horror bring our favorite tropes and a great sense of humor to creat a truly charming anthology. When this one comes out on June 18th I will definitely be adding it to my collection. See more Here

 Compartmentalization Storage Facility (2019)- by Eliaz Rodriguez, I loved that this idea was brought to the screen. Imagine if you could take those hang up and emotional scar tissue of your soul and store it away making you a better person as you move forward in life. Well this film explores that theme and does it in a clever way. Part two of this film should be an episode of Storage Wars where without seeing inside the unit people bid on and by other peoples issues.

For Your Consideration (2020) - Not my favorite but sort of an inside Hollywood comedy making fun of the process of making projects and the prejudices that come with generating ideas and putting together teams.

Gabby! (2020) - I really liked this and it wonderful little turns, at 11 minutes it tells a well rounded story about a cartoonist who decided to kill off her main character Gabby but when she witnesses a murder and the killer comes for her things change in an unexpected way.

His and Herzog (2020) - Wow, I really loved this film, such a strange and smart film about relationships and communication using a truly novel technique. A pat on the back (virtual) to Gates Bradley for putting this film together. It may be my favorite short in this festival.

Little Willy (2019) - Inside the world of horror conventions we have the fictional former child star Adam Castle (Andrew Bowser) who struggles with his life appearing at horror conventions selling images, autographs and interactions with fans to make a living. When the doll he starred with begins to talk to him he slowly descends into madness. I loved that both Zach Galligan and Adrienne Barbeau costar in this wonderfully evil little film.

Low (2020)- by Megan Duffy was a cool litttle film where Sasquatch tries to make friends at a party. Cool music and a wonderfully shown story arc for the character made this a really cool watch. It is great when an idea can be reduced to the essentials and then executed with skill.

Pen Pals (2019)- A ghost story with a cool little twist about manipulating the supernatural ability to write and receive letters from a ghost ( or someone in the past).

The Haunted Swordsman (2019)- The most awesome puppet oriented Ronin story that I thought was just wonderful. Some big names in this film including the voices of Christopher Lloyd, James Hong, Jason Scott Lee and Franka Potente.

Chattanooga Film Festivat pt.2

I Who Have No One (2019) - A powerful short slasher that encapsulates the pain of being judged for your size in a world obsessed with fitness and beauty. It also shows the self empowering of one woman in the world through her acts of mayhem and violence. I thought this was saying so much and all wrapped up in a slasher. Written and Directed by Pierre Tsigaridis and Dina Silva. Silva also stars as Frances the lead who melts down from the pressure of having to look beautiful or else being dismissed. Tsigaridis also has a role as Jerome, the devil of a sort encouraging Frances down her violent road to hell.  

Best Friends Forever (BFF) (2019) -  A play on urban legends where saving yourself from the ghost may be worse than dying. This was what it was harmless but not particularity new in conception. Entertaining with pretty decent effects, but just not my cup of tea. The filming is spot on and the stereotypical characters hit their marks so if urban legend stories do it for you check this one out.

Separation (2020) -  Rebekah McKendry's short using body horror to emphasize a marriage's end in the most bloody horrifying way. Smart and too the point the short does not linger, it establishes the situation and conditions and climaxes with a wonderfully bloody scene. Dr. McKendry is a producer Director and Podcaster  as well as one of my personal favorite horror experts.

Maere (2018) -  Explores a doctors interaction with syndrome where people die in their sleep having nightmares. Lots of dream logic and creaking noises make the doctor's own life a tragic story.

Catatonic (2019) - OMG An obsessed cat owners trials and tribulations when his beloved Charles Lickens vanishes. This is both obscenely gross and hilarious in following the lead Cat Daddy (Timmy Ramone) as he pathetically obsesses about his lost cat. Written and Directed by Brian Zahm this one is a strange delight. Could not find any IMDB credit for the film or the people connected to it.

SeaSapian (2019) -  A cool noir fantasy where there is a world below the ocean (the ocean is the sky in this world) and every now and then something falls into it, fish a ship or in this case a mermaid. Cleverly made it is a hard boiled detective story creatively put together by Sasha Carr and starring Leigh Carr as our detective. I thought this was wonderful. Could not find any IMDB credit for the film.

Beauty Juice (2019) - A short and a bit on the nose critique of the beauty industry. SO what though it is well filmed and its five minutes. Written and directed by Natasha Halevi and starring Jennifer Holland it is just the right size for its message.

Live Forever (2019) - A tribute musical to the often forgotten victims of horror movies. Wonderful with gore effects it is a very clever piece. Gustav Egerstedt wrote and directed this really great number that any horror fan can love. It is very much worth checking out.

The Wave (2019) - A bad trip for Justin Long teaches him that the universe strives to right itself of bad behavior and immoral decisions and that he can participate by making the necessary sacrifices. I really dug this film and participated in the Q&A event on Sunday evening. The trippy nature of the film is so wonderfully uncomfortable and the morality tale it tells were so spot on it is definitely one you should seek out.Writer Carl W. Lucas constructs a great tale about having to make amends for our moral failings.  Director Gille Klabin puts it together with a great cast and a wonderful flair.

Metamorphosis (2015) - A Revenge story of a middle-aged woman May Wong (Cici Lau)abused and spurned by her cheating husband and the revenge she gets. Maybe the oldest film in the festival but it cracks with power. The lead actress Wong is excellent and the sad and disturbing results on her actions on her daughter show that this is not a simple revenge thriller where the victim is redeemed and the only consequences are born by the evil doers. Written by Feiyang Sun and Elaine Xia  and Directed by Xia this is a must watch in the festival

Chattanooga Film Festival 2020

Chattanooga Film Festival 2020 - Online but right in time!  I was planning to attend the Chattanooga Film Festival this year when the world experience this horribly debilitating pandemic. I was more than thrilled to sign up and participate online when the opportunity arose. I signed up ready to go and was awaiting the day when I could see some of the great films and shorts, as well as live events that would be the online version of the festival. As always you can give your thoughts on the festival through the comments section of the blog or shoot me an email movies@edhovey.com or tweet @Soresport
The start of the festival is a bit of a sad story for me though. I live in Massachusetts and my Mom has been getting fighting a incurable form of cancer in Tampa for the last three years. I don't normally share too much about my life but I have to shed some tears and type here to get it out of my head today as I start talking about the festival. After a really bad bout of chemo on Monday before the fest my Mom had a reaction where she was not lucid or in control of herself. This was a deciding factor for her deciding to stop her treatment and let the disease run its course. My sister Trish who is caring for her called me and my six other sisters to let us know if we wanted to say goodbye we should come down to Florida as soon as possible. We were taught by Mom while growing up that family always comes first so we all got on the phone and computers and started making plans to get to FL by Wednesday which was my Mom's 76th birthday. Fuck the risk of the pandemic some thing just have to happen and making what will be my Mom's last birthday special as possible is all that mattered. So tickets in hand I met my Sister Dawn and her daughter Shawna at Logan on the first flight down on Wednesday.
  Florida while I was there went from pretending to take the pandemic seriously to opening most things by the day I left. Here in the northeast where we have stayed in our homes to try to bend the curve saving thousands of lives they have taken the Federal Govt. approach and do social distancing but let whomever ignore any rules in place in fact celebrating when they do. Still I was impressed by the number of citizens who seemed to be taking the pandemic seriously even with the lack of leadership on the Governor's part. Since I was already taking a chance in travelling I just kept having that horrible early story of the pandemic in my head where the family got together and half of them later died of Covid-19. I have to say though that wasn't going to stop me on this visit, I felt guilty and selfish while already grieving for what will inevitable end for my Mom.
  It's such a strange feeling to know that you will not see someone again when you leave. During the visit even though you are having laughs, supporting each other with the conflicting feelings, having family meals and making my Mom so happy. Wednesday was a great day for her she was sharp as a tack and so happy to see each new person who arrived. She was a shell of herself for sure, not able to walk and with a voice that seemed a quarter of the strength it had last time I saw her. I visited last right before Christmas (in the photo) and she was in such great spirits and feeling positive she would have much more life. Chemo though is a hard treatment and eventually is worse than the cancer poisoning your body to hold the disease at bay. Still not knowing we were coming my Mom got to see all her kids and many of her grandkids as we each showed up at the house her surprised and joy was so evident. The first part of our visits she was concerned with us wanting to make sure we understood her decision to stop treatment. Then we partied together a family sharing stories and hanging out in the pool and hosted wonderfully by my Sister Trish and her husband Chris who have carried a the burden of my Mom's care for these last few years. I am so thankful for them and their loving hearts and strong hands. As we all moved through the week we knew we would have to have that last visit, time alone to say goodbye. It was so hard for each of us but I have to say being able to come from that goodbye and hug my Sisters and my daughter was so important.
  Just a bit on who my Mom is. She is part of a family (Mills) that has been in this country as far back as the 1700's, they fought all the wars from the revolution on and built lives in New England mostly in Maine and Massachusetts. She was born in Boston and grew up on Fort Hill in Roxbury, pregnant at 15 she married my father but he struggled with alcohol and she left him at age 23 taking her five kids and moving into assisted housing on Franklin Hill in Roxbury. My mom taught me about perseverance and hard work, she didn't settle for her lot she worked her whole life taking any job that would have her to work her way off welfare and to reenter the middle class. Even though we had hard years, where we barely stayed in housing, always struggled to have food and clothes to wear. Moving like nomads when we could no longer afford the place we were ( I went to 9 schools before I graduated High school). She persevered and continued to fight. Not always at home for us we children learned hard lessons on the streets but always stood up for each other. She eventually got us all through high school and with her second husband, Father to two of my sisters lived a very nice life. It is my honor to give this information to you to let you know how great a person can be even if they are not leading anything but a family.
  I arrived back on Saturday and am now hunkered down in the bottom half of my split level home. My wife and I are separated for the next two weeks while I quarantine to make sure I did not bring the virus back with me. I have to say although I am sad, it is a wonderful thing to be able to use the Festival as a distraction from all that is going on. Thanks everyone who made this happen. You are in the right place at the right time for me and I appreciate it.
  So on with what I am watching: I think I will a keep this really spoiler free relying on my feeling about the watching and less about any plot twist and the such that may spoil the film. I am a day and a half into my VIP pass but ready to use it. I will also add to this post as I view more films over the next couple days.

Eat Brains Love (2019) - Zombies and Psychics combine in this horror comedy. I have to say I really enjoyed that the first thing I saw was a comedy. A zombie plague that is contracted though sex that but with twists in how it works to allow the characters to fulfill their roles as high school stereotypes. A secret government agency of psychics who can hunt them down, a movement of infected organizing to fight back, and a high school boy lusting after the prettiest girl in school. I enjoyed this mostly because it was light and entertaining with a new and different take on a genre that seems to never stop seeing innovation. Writers Mike Herro and David Strauss come up with some inventive stuff while Director Rodman Flender paces well and catches some of the comedy bit wonderfully. The acting is good starring Jake Cannavale,  Angelique Rivera, Sarah Yarkin, Jim Titus and the always great Patrick Fabian as the villian. Not to mention the gore is pretty well done in the film.

Inferno (2019) - Writer Director Bishal Dutta, with actors Taylor Cloyes and Craig Ng (as Skullface) give us one of those in late out early seven minutes shorts where you are in the climax of a story when it starts. Nothing needs to be explained as in that seven minutes it is shown not told. Well done with Cloyes portraying the intensity of the characters situation from the moment she is on screen.

The Yellow Night (2019) - The incomplete IMDB entry for this film at this point does not do it justice. Sure it is a story about a group of teens going to a Brazilian island to celebrate the end of high school only to face horrors beyond imagining. It is more than that too. I have to watch it again because I was viewing right before bed and really want to get into the themes presented with a clearer head. It bring quantum mechanics, multi dimensions and crossovers in the fabric of time into a story about kids leaving their old lives as students in defiance of social norms. The use of Patti Smith music ( I loved that, one of the most honest fever dream song writers of her time) as a defining force to show these kids are the outliers. They are the ones that don't fit into this world and them end up in a place beyond the world as we know it was a brilliant bit of writing by Ramone Porta Mota (also Directing) and Jhésus Tribuzi. The pacing was a bit off at times with the trying to show the changes happening around the kids, it left the viewer wanting a bit quicker build up and reveal and some really bigger reveal towards the end. Like I said I was a bit tired when I started it so I would like to see it again with fresh eyes. I have a feeling I missed some of the depth of this multi dimensional film. This is a film where in reviewing it hearing the director talk about the ideas would be very interesting. I will try to feature it later in the future for a full review.

The Droving (2020) Crime Revenge

The Droving (2020) - Small independent films in the age of streaming actually have a fair chance at being seen. If a producer is savvy on social media she / he can get someone like me, who likes to take chances on films to put eyes on a project and get a bit of feedback or in this case a review. NOT that a large audience reads this blog but that does not change my love for films and the desire to write however poorly about them. Since the film is new and the makers Rubicon wants to create a buzz I will do all in my power to NOT spoil the film but talk about the experience in a way that allows for fair viewing without spoiling the plot. Rubicon is a small company (at least right now) and describe themselves as "...Rubicon Films we bring dark fairy tales and folklore to the screen with heart and style.  We produce independent feature films in a number of different genres."
  Martin's (Daniel Oldroyd) sister Megan (Amy Tyger) was murdered and being an ex-military information extractor he is driven to find the person who killed her. In a sort of  Bryan Mills, in Taken (2008) he has a certain set of skills that make him up for the job.  Questioning characters that knew her Tess (Suzie Frances Garton), The Hermit (Jonathan Lawrence Risdon), Simon (Bobby Robertson) he learns about The Merchant (Alexander King) and how that belief lead to Megan's death eventually solving the mystery of who dunit. Much like the film taken one interaction leads to another, then to another with each step getting Martin closer to the killer. On the way we get to see his "skills" and his internal struggle with the things he has done in the name of obtaining information.
The Droving filmed in Northern England, The Lakes Region, Penrith, Cumbria a lovely little town from the looks of it around the time of their winter droving arts festival. A Drover is someone who drive herd animals into town, and the current Winter Droving festival is an arts festival that encourages you to join the herd. This is a film that builds a myth about a supernatural entity called The Merchant, I will say he is a demon or devil who offers those who have lost love ones the chance to get them back. The exchange though is the death of others, which brings us to the story.  
  My impressions on the story and players are that they have a decent main character, with enough back story to fill him out. Oldroyd plays him how I would expect, with a calmness that seethes rage behind his face (mask). Maybe a bit too confident by the last scene we see some real emotion. Although a bit too "this leads to that" in it's approach the story pacing is decent. It's not a long film and I never found myself disengaged. Tess played with a really nice nuance by Garton was an empathetic character. Risdon's portrayal of the hermit was a bit more manic but considering the plot points I wouldn't really fault him for that. I would have liked the mythology of the Merchant to be a bit more hashed out since it was pivotal to the mystery of why. I wonder if I would have criticized it though if we had gotten a bunch of exposition on the myth. I guess it would depend on how organic those scenes felt. With the slight twist of an ending that leads to the continuation maybe more would have been better to fill out the supernatural side of the story. Overall though I liked the movie and was certainly entertained.
  There were a couple of technical things that distract a bit from that enjoyment. The ambient sounds in many scenes were too loud and distracting, birds, wind, fireplaces, and rain at various times interfered with the dialog in a really annoying way. The other criticism has to do with the night scenes and just that those scenes needed to be lit better. In one case there is a fight scene by Martin's parked car and because the scene is too dark it lacks the impact it could have had to show off his prowess. Like I said earlier though overall enjoyable, the Director George Popov keeps the pacing crisp and the cinematography particularly of the landscapes in that part of England makes me want to visit. The place is stunning and captured beautifully by Harry Young. The music was understated and quite lovely. So while you are all spending most of you time at home during this worldwide pandemic watching way too many screens, take a chance on a small independent film, you won't be sorry.

You can see the Trailer on Youtube

Amsterdamned (1988) Horror Slasher

  Amsterdamned (1988) -  This is a slasher film I had never seen, it opens with a POV of someone in the water in the canals of Amsterdam. The sound and the ducking under the water of this point of view tells us that it is someone in scuba gear. When the diver steals a butcher knife from a restaurant we know we are going to get right to the business of this slasher film right away. Moving right to the first kill establishes the setting, a poor sex worker after fighting off a cab driver is stabbed to death and dragged in to the canal but a killer in a scuba suit.  We have a setting but the fun that has just begun does not stop there. Wasting no time a tourist boat full of scouts runs into the body of the sex worker that the killer hung from a bridge scarring the poor kids for life.
  After being introduce to our feature cop Eric (Huub Stapel) and his teenage daughter Anneke (Tatum Dagelet) we get right into the solving of the canal killer. At this point you could anticipate that the cop will be on the case and that some time in the future his daughter will be at risk from the killer. This film does not waste time and we soon get a second murder scene where two guys collecting water samples from the canals are brutalized and left in their blood splattered boat. Eric meets John van Meegeren (Wim Zomer) a river cop. The two have a history with Eric's exwife so they have that we can work together but will show each other a bit of attitude kinda relationship. We will see if John saves Eric's life later in the movie, that is what the dynamic suggest. Now the cops know there is a diver prowling the canals so they have to hop into action to solve the crimes. Time to check out diving schools and all registered divers. They red herring the manager of the local dive club a bit but Eric being there is also so he can meet his love interest in the film Laura (Monique van de Ven). Also we meet Martin, a psychiatrist and former diver.
The murder scenes and body discovery scenes are pretty good in this film and as the bodies pile up pressure goes up for Eric to solve the crimes. We learn that Martin could be a suspect also a guy who use to dive but gave it up after some kind of event. We also see that there are canals all over this city and that will make it hard to track down the killer. Of course he goes from stalking and killing at night to killing in the middle of the day. A cool visual as he kills a pretty waitress who is floating on the canal getting sun in her plastic raft. Even with pressure from the Mayor we see a bit of internal politics and the way the bureaucracy works in the country. I like how Eric's boss defends him to the Mayor even though he has spent more time pursuing Laura than the case. You can also feel the Giallo influences on this film, its blue lighting at night mixed with reds, close ups of feet, hands and weapons it all works in what really has turned into a police procedural for the most part. The police get a lead but miss the guy as he rides away on a motorcycle. There is a chase scene that I was not expecting as the cops try to corner the man on the motorcycle. This lead seems like a red herring also. His arrest sets up the trope where the higher up officials want this guy to be prosecuted but Eric is not sure he has his man. What to do, oh yeah Laura and Eric get to bump uglies while we get another murder thus proving Eric was right.
  I loved the underwater scuba fight the cops death. We have boats following the bubbles of the killer from their boats. A real slow motion chase scene that still seems to have a bit of tension. They eventually trap the bubble producer in a lock so they just have to wait for him to run out of air and surface. They start pumping the water out of the lock sure that they have the killer but when the water level falls enough we see he shed his tanks and got away. Still after him though they think they have him again only to see him slip through their hands. Since this is about the canals in Amsterdam the movie can't be complete without a boat chase scene on the waterways. Eric pursues a guy dressed in black leather  all though the city at high speed. So reminiscent of like a James Bond movie even at the end with the giant explosion. The pursuit then continues on foot through the sewers. Eric is shot with a dart and passes out but not before shooting the guy.

  The story switches from hospitalized Eric to love interest Laura, she arrive at her therapy session where Martin is late. As she listened t music the camera pans the room focusing on a door in the back of the apartment. Laura hears a bang and goes to investigate. Searching the boat house because of course he lives on the canals and now our suspicion about him is raised. As Laura walks around we see the discarded Salvation Army collection can and we have to believe that Martin is the killer. Now Laura is in jeopardy being at his place all alone and not suspecting him. Then she finds his wet suit with water on it and his mask shattered and she knows. She calls the hospital to talk to Eric but he is still passed out from medication. She should just call the police but apparently is too panicked to think of it. Martin comes home and she has to hide.  Will Eric learn about Laura being trapped with Martin in time? Can Laura find a way to sneak out of the house without Martin catching her?  It all plays out during a rain storm with thunder and lightening and when it does there is a frantic scene that really is a proper climax.

  I like this film well enough, some mystery about the killer a cop in pursuit it all adds up to an entertaining story. We finally get the story of who the killer is and how a chemical spill underwater deformed him and drove him mad. The ending is a bit disappointing but overall this is a well crafted film. I watched it on DVD in a print that was less than perfect from Netflix but very view-able. SO they never brought back the red herring of the club manager and his daughter was never really developed other than to show that Eric is an absolutely horrible neglectful father.

Things:

Written and directed by Dick Maas he is known for Prey (2016) and one of my favorite Christmas horror movies Sint (2010).
I learned in the commentary that they did not actually light the scenes on the canals but waited until dusk to get the blue light effects.

Spitting in a cops face, is something you don't see too often.

Kills, one hooker, two environmentalists, one salvation army worker, and old man on his boat, a river cop so the body count is pretty low.

From Wikipedia "At the American Film Market in 1988, the movie would go on to become the third highest selling motion picture that year. Vestron Pictures released the film dubbed in English on home video. The dubbed version featured the voices of lead actors Huub Stapel, Monique van de Ven, and Serge-Henri Valcke in English, as they speak English quite well. The film was given a limited release, grossing $14,819 on 5 screens in its opening weekend in North America, and a total of $98,003 over its entire run"

CoronaVisions: Other things my eyes are seeing and ears are hearing while hunkering down.

  This uniquely strange experience we are all dealing with has left us with many hours to fill while sitting at home. This being a house with every possible entertainment possibility streaming through it as well as a movie collection that is somewhere around 3000 films I feel privileged to be able to distract myself really with ease. I am writing about many of the films I watch on this blog and am adding this running list of things I checked out. Here I will just touch on things that I've seen but not necessarily that I want to right a full review on. You can suggest things movies@edhovey.com

UPDATED REGULARLY!!!!
Next Movie!    "Late Phases"

Podcasts Count too!!

Pseudopod - This is the best horror fiction podcast out there. Original and also reads of some wonderful classics. It is worth your time.

Here's the Deal w/ Joe Biden - I have to try to get to know Biden now that Bernie has dropped out. So far he seems like a bit of a jerk.

The Ezra Klein Show -  Another journalist trying to make a difference during these trying times.

Rumble - Michael Moore podacsting from the heart of the pandemic in NYC

NOFS(Nightmare on Film Street) podcast is good horror entertainment. This latest is Mindhunter vs. The Cell.

In Our Times - This is a BBC history pod that I absolutely love.

One Album at a Time
Band                                   Album                                   Year

R.E.M.                      Automatic for the People                1992

Pxndx                        Amentes Sunt Amentes                  2006
This is the album that came out after their controversy where they were accused of plagerism. I like this band but still not sure if they peoperly addressed those carges.

The Screens Sessions

The Platform (2019) - A really on the nose analogy for trickle down economics, but really well done and certainly a message that America needs. 

One Album at a Time
Band                                   Album                                   Year

Otis Redding                 Live in Europe                           1967

N.W.A.                        Straight Outta Compton               1988


The Screens Sessions

Kingdom (2019) This is a Netflix series set in what looks like late 19th century Korea. I am guessing the timeline here, there were a few guns but mostly swords. The story is one of political intrigue where an adviser to the dead King uses a Resurrection procedure which makes the king a zombie. Unfortunately for them this spreads outside of the palace. Disposed Prince Lee Chang, must grow to become the leader that the country needs as the zombie plague spreads. 

SX_Tape (2013) - Found footage can be a thing that either you like it or you don't. There is always this thought, "Why is he/she still filming?" when the shit is hitting the fan. This one has that issue as well as being really similar to Grave Encounters (2011). In this a couple thinking about doing a sex tape enter a closed hospital to explore their idea. Then shit gets real.

The Golem (2018) -  This was a surprising film to me, bringing religious myth and a historical drama into a horror package that delivered within the main character's arc. The story of a scapegoated community during a plague who has not been touched by the death only because they are isolated. When the threat from the greater world arrives one resident takes a drastic step to try to protect the community, bring to life the titular Golem. But you know its horror sometimes there are unintended consequences.

Ever After (2018)  - aka EndZeit is a new take on an old and worn trope of the Zombie film. I like the character arcs in this film and since that is where the story lives found the movie enjoyable. Not a ton of zombies but that is not what this one is about.

One Album at a Time
Band                                   Album                                   Year

Machine Head                Unto the Locust                         2011
Fucking killing it on this album, not the most upbeat thing in my collection but the music is killer. This is fast and hard so don't expect ballads.

La Fuga                         Definitive Collection                  2017
Another really solid Spanish language Rock band who have been doing it for years
   
Jackson Browne               For Everyman                          1973
Great songwriting and incredible voice Jackson Browne is wonderful.

Ice Cube                           Death Certificate                      1991
Yep! Place for this in my collection. Platinum his 2nd solo album. Kicks ass.

 Hank Williams             Settin' the Woods on Fire            2006
Compilation of Hank's Greatest hits Why don't you love me like you used to do?

Gang of Four                   Entertainment!                          1979
Like that punk sound, totally would not have been into this band but for Rolling Stone's top 500 albums. This one sits at #483 and I am glad I found it. That guitar riffs are really great on this album. And the version I have has a cover of "Sweet Jane" Live

Fleetwood Mac                Rumours                                  1977
A classic. it is #26 in Rolling Stones Top 500 albums of all time   I am not personally a fan but I have to say I know a lot of the songs since I am old enough to listen to a lot of radio.Since I have been collecting the 500 of all time this is in the collection.

Cold                            The Things We Can't Stop            2019
I have liked Cold since I saw them at a Lollapaloosa back in the early 90s. This album is classic Cold with its' enticing sound walls and heart felt lyrics. Perfectly Cold.

Daniel Innantuono             Katiebird                                 2006
This is a soundtrack to a horror movie that is guitar based fragmentation and chords with themes for the film. Reminiscent of early Pink Floyd in its approach it worked well on a walk where I was focusing on Pokemon GO.

Eagles                                  Eagles                                    1972
Not my favorite Eagles album but this 1972 recording has a couple songs everyone should know in "Take it Easy" "Witchy Woman" and "Peaceful Easy Feeling"


The Screens Sessions

Legion (2010) - Kelly's first pick on our horror group watch, a group of strangers is besieged by supernatural forces because the pregnant waitress at the roadside diner is pregnant with the second coming of Jesus and demonic forces want to kill the child before it is born. This movie did not hold up very well although I don't think I liked it when it originally came out.

The Screens Sessions

Better Call Saul - This show is a bit of a acquired taste, a show about an unreliable but somewhat likable lawyer with a low moral bar. Sometimes its like watching a slow motion car wreck but if you like that, the interpersonal aspects are well defined and the character arc solid.

Devil's Pass (2013) - This was a Joy pick, a filmmaker and her crew investigating a legendary story about a group of hikers who died in the Ural Mountains of Russia, find more than they expected when they recreate the hike. Pretty decent little movie with a weird sci-fi ending. I like the mystery of the film but I kept feeling like it could have been better, tighter.

Star Trek Picard - I can''t really say I like this series, its a strange mix of gleeful Star Trek sentimentality and hokey save the universe adventurism. I am a completest so I keep popping in no matter how outrageous the plot gets. Seriously when someone dies let them be dead.

Event Horizon (1997) - My last pick for a film watch, this is a decent sci-fi horror film with a good cast and a mind fuck of an idea. Some of the effects especially objects floating in the space ship must have been really cool computer graphics in the 90s but now are so dated. When the first folding space drive is tried on the Event Horizon the ship disappears, well its back and Our crew is going to investgate. But where has the ship been and what did it bring back?


Podcasts Count too!!

All the podcast from the Zombiegrrlz  These Stream Queens - Horror movie talk about film found on the streamingverse, Zombie Girls the original horror talk pod, The Cast of K about all thing Dark Towera working through the books one chapter at a time, and The More Deadly Podcast hitting one movie an episode.

Post Mortem - Writer Director Nick Garris is also a wonderful interviewer and this guest oriented podcast allow us to learn about people in the movie business. Horror themed.

Best of the Left - This is my favorite political podcast, people who are not progressive may want to avoid this. Or listen and hear how others think about things.

Shockwaves - Horror talk from some great personalities with guest on top of that.

Pod Save America - Former Obama aids talk about the news of the day.

NOFS(Nightmare on Film Street) pocast is good horror entertainment.

What a Day! - A daily dose of what is going on in the country in a quick fifteen minute format, start your day with What a Day!

A Star to Steer Her By. - It's a Star Trek podcast, they are currently reviewing two episodes of Deep Space Nine each pod. ITs nerdy and fun to listen too.

Hysteria - The Women of Crooked media talk the topics of the day before ending with a Hill to Die on, defending any stance that does not need to be defended. Smart, informed and current.


The Screens Sessions

Supernatural - In its 15th season and the Winchester boys and Angel Castiel are in the final conflict. Not with the devil or his minions, been there done that, but with God himself. This season we see that God has created the multiverse so that he can live through the characters he creates. Sam and Dean are having none of it and with the help of Death and the Son of the Devil (Jack) they are planning to bring the all mighty to his knees. Well they hope for that outcome, in its final season and a bit worn this show still warms my heart.

Under the Shadow (2016) -  A low budget film with some great scares and a compelling story. This is Joy's second pick and she picked a winner. This is a tense little tale of a mother and her daughter left alone in a Tehran apartment building during the Iraq-Iran war where she is in constant threat from Iraqi missiles. At the same time while her neighbors all flee for safer destinations she and her daughter experience horrors outside the war threats, as a Djinn attaches to her daughter and wreaks havoc on their already complicated lives. Well done small film by Babak Anvari with some really great low budget scares. Joy says the version she watched was poorly dubbed but I had the in Iranian subtitled version and found it enjoyable.

One Album at a Time
Band                                   Album                                   Year

Babasónicos                     Infame                                     2003
This is a solid main stream rock band from Argentina, spanish language.  Easy to listen to and enjoy the songs are tight and the music solid. I find this very singable rock with no hard edges.

A.N.I.M.A.L.                   Usa Toda Tu Fueza                 1993
If you like 90's heavy metal this band could do it for you. Spanish language hard beats and raging guitars. Why do I only have their first album? I think I first came across this album because it has a cover of Highway to Hell on it.

The Screens Sessions

The Walking Dead Season 11 - I should have stopped watching this show years ago. It has lost its shine probably 6 seasons ago but I am a bit of a completest. I just find most of this show at this point is problems that can be solved by killing the enemies leader. One bullet solutions! Of course you could argue that two bullets would be needed to end "The Whisperers" threat but hey it is doable. So I am still watching without enthusiasm.

The Hunt (2020) Yes I dropped the $20 on a film that would have no box office at all if it was not moved from theaters to streaming. This one is a bit of an odd cookie, a very competent action film. A clever satire where I am not sure where I stand on the politics of it and a lesson to all about doing your research; Especially if you are going to grab a group of people to hunt at a manor in Croatia. Maybe I should have gone with the safer "The Invisible Man". Still I think I like the film it kicks along at a good pace and has a final fight to the death that rivals Uma Thurman and Vivica A. Fox's fight in Kill Bill. Betty Gilpin carries the film with a smoldering acceptance of her situation and an ability to kick ass..

Westworld Season 3 - Here we are in season three and the show is still interesting Delores seems to be in the real world while Maeve seems to be aware but unable to leave the park. Bernard continues to investigate his nature and the structures of the world. It is all good fun so I watch the dvr version of the show each week.

The Nesting (1981) Horror Ghosts

The Nesting (1981) - This is the story of a agoraphobic writer Lauren (Robin Groves) drawn to a house to write only to solve the mystery of the house's history and her own as well. Lauren is experiencing agoraphobic anxiety attacks whenever she leaves her house. You have to like her attitude though, she is attacking the problem with her therapist and thinking about getting out of the city where the attacks are more common. So whatever is going on emotionally for her she is seeking solutions and in this case she heads out to a small town Dover Falls and rents a house where she can complete her book. Surprising to her is when she gets to the house it is the same one that is on the cover of her last book. An Octagon shaped place so unique that it couldn't be a coincidence could it? In real life the place is called the Armour-Stiner House and is just a beautiful piece of architecture.  We can glean from her therapy sessions that she has had some kind of trauma in her past. She is reluctant to be romantic with her friend Mark (Christopher Loomis) a wise cracker who is so in the friend-zone he does not stand a chance with Lauren.
 John Carridine) and managed by his grandson Daniel (Michael David Lally) the house has been empty for years so renting it out to Lauren seems reasonable. When she meets Col. LeBrun he takes one look at her and has a stroke. Later we learn this stopped him from saying who she looks like. So we have a haunted house, a woman with a mysterious past and an old man who has his own secrets.

In the cold open we see the house back in the 1930s or some such time and know from that scene that some murders took place there. So this appears at this point to possible be a haunted house movie?  If it were that simple I suppose we would all be very disappointed. This is a house with a history, once a brothel it is owned by Col. Lebrun (
  As haunting kinds of things happen in the house, Lauren who is still fighting her fears is sort of stuck there. Her plan might not have been the best when it comes to a house full of ghosts. I mean its scary when you are standing in front of the mirror admiring your own breasts and a pair of ghostly hands decide to cop a feel. That freaks her out enough to get her therapist Dr Webb (Patrick Farrelly) to rush out to the house. He finds her frantic on the roof of the house, its a story of how she got there but while trying to help her Webb is accidentally killed.
  The dying and the haunting does not stop there, it continues revealing to the audience the nature of the brothel. We see Lauren as part of the brothel workforce? Is that really her, is she losing her mind? All this is answered and more but first a bit of masculine hostility. After being rude to the handyman Frank (Bill Rowley), Lauren invites him to tea to apologize for her behavior. Well Frank being a horrible human makes it clear that if she talked nice to him she must want his cock in her. Lucky for Lauren the ghost intervene before Frank can get too far, frightening him out of the house and eventually to his demise.

  There are holes in this film and on IMDB it is only rated at a 4.8 of 10 still it tries to present a cohesive story. It's not that the film is bad but it weaves a tale that does not always make sense. In all this is a story about how Lauren returns to the house she was born in and this event initiates the ghosts of the former brothel get revenge on the men that slaughtered them. Lauren's arc is overcoming her fears and learning her own personal history. For the Colonel, Frank and Abner (David Tabor) it is about paying for your misdeeds in this case against their wills. The spooky is not spooky enough (One good birds jump scare early on), the crazy closer to being up to par. Especially Abner the murderous louse who chases Lauren in cars in what has to be the strangest car chase I have ever seen, it reason is so small for such a big event. In the end though I did not come away thinking this movie was anything special so I am not going to recommend it.

The Color Out of Space (2019)

The Color Out of Space (2019) My anticipation for this film was strong, a big fan of Director Richard Stanley, Hardware (1990), Dust Devil (1992) (I wrote about that here) and after recently seeing Nicolas Cage in Mandy, I thought he might be great for this film. Stanley is, a unique individual  a spiritual semi shaman who connects the coincidences of life to a higher interconnections of all things. He is an acquired taste as a personality but is a very creative and competent film maker. A family on an isolated farm sees strange happenings after a meteor crashes in their yard. The consequences are apocalyptic for the family changing their lives for ever. What isn't there to like about that? This is part of the sequestered series of movies, as we are all hunkered down trying to not catch the coronavirus. My daughter and I are taking turns picking film we both watch and then talk about to keep our sanity in our isolation. She is alone up in Burlington VT while I and my wife are in Central Massachusetts. My wife does not participate  in horror movies so she is upstairs watching Call the Midwife. The first movie in this series is Mara, you can read on this blog about that. This was my first choice.
  This film was produced by Elijah Woods company SpectreVision which also made a Nicolas cage film Mandy as well as putting money into some wonderful alternative vision of horror like Cooties (2014), Daniel Isn't Real (2019) and A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014). You have got to hand it to this company really throwing money at project most production companies would not touch. In this case a new adaptation of a H.P. Lovecraft short story made by a director Richard Stanley who had not made a feature in twenty years. Then they get Nicolas Cage a mainstream actor to bring his envelope pushing experimentation to it, and throw in 83 year old Tommy Chong in a bit role but his first in a horror movie. He said and I paraphrase, that he always stayed away from doing horror movies because of the chance of the karma might be bad, he did not want to wake these spirits. Filmed in Portugal the lush beauty of the landscape may not be central Massachusetts but it certainly was interesting. It sets the location and gives a place to develop a horrifying story.
  The setup of the family and their world is the focus of the first act. Nathan Gardner (Nicholas Cage) has moved his family back to the family farm after his abusive father's death. He is seeking to do something with the place and is raising alpacas as the animal of the future. His wife Theresa (Joely Richardson) is the breadwinner of the family doing investment advising online from the farm. She has just recovered from a cancer and has yet to fully feel herself in her relationship with her husband. They have three kids, Lavinia (Madeleine Arthur) the oldest teen practices Alexandrian Wicca, is using her ceremonies first to seek good health for her Mother and then to get the fuck out of dodge when the shit hits the fan. She is the teen that really wants to get back to civilization and off the farm. You can imagine growing up in the city and then in your late teens your parents pack you up and move you to a farm 12 miles from the nearest town. Her teen brother Benny (Brenden Myer) just wants to stay high, smoking weed with the local squatter Ezra (Tommy Chong) he is just trying to cope. Through both teens we get the picture that alpaca breeding is not the first scheme his Father has gotten involved in and is just trying to get through the ordeal. The last member and youngest is little brother Jack (Julian Hilliard) is adequate for having a child at risk.  We also learn that the family is hanging onto the farm despite the local mayor wanting to get them out of there so a new dam and reservoir can be built flooding the land. Ward (Elliot Knight) a surveyor, is a sort of love interest for Lavinia and outsider who can later intervene for the family. When I noticed that it was his voice that was narrating the story in the opening voice over I suddenly felt like the story might not have a happy ending.
  In the night a meteorite lands in the front yard, coloring the sky and glowing with a pink/purple aura. The event makes the local news but the meteorite itself seems to sink down into the crater it made. The foreshadowing of close ups of people drinking water and looking down the well should give you an idea of what is going on. Then things start to change, as the plants and animals on the farm are slowly transformed and the family members themselves face changes, losing time and not totally thinking clearly. As the farm transforms and some things are made hideous we have to appreciate the people doing the special effects on this film. It's beautiful the way the colors paint the scenes like an expressionist painting. The affects are shown  in small and large ways the transformation of the environment is exceptional. The grotesqueness of the animal transformation contrast that nicely reminding me of scenes in "The Thing". Being a  H.P. Lovecraft story we have the growing dread of the situation and the idea of the monstrous. Lovecraft once said this is his favorite of his story and the Director Richard Stanley seems to handle the look and feel with loving care himself. A story of an old forest in fictional town of Arkham Massachusetts a fictional hill town I can only imagine it as my town in Hudson MA some hundred and fifty years ago. But it probably more likely that Lovecraft was hearing about the making of the Quabbin reservoir which is Boston's water supply about 25 miles to the west of me. It was built between 1930-33 so Lovecraft would have heard of the plans for it in 1927 when he wrote this short story. The original is very similar in plot to the film but dated as you would imagine, there is a great version of the story you can listen to at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JH7nEjwbEY

  The effects become more complex spreading, maybe a better word is infecting is more appropriate. The environment changes and the family is effected at the same time the alpacas are transformed. Reminiscent of The Thing  for some physical effects and The Shining for the family dynamics, the effects are limited, probably for budget reasons but very effective. The color scheme and digital work is exceptional and even though the story stays small and on the farm the special effects of the changing farm is just wonderful. You could argue that this is a Nick Cage film, and he certainly has the chops to play the failing father in crisis, losing his shit he plays crazy really well with the right amount of unpredictability and menace. You could also argue that the protagonist is Lavinia and the film is seen through her eyes. She is connected through rituals she performs to the events in a metaphysical way, its not cause and effect but is is part of the interconnections this film emanates. As things fall apart, or come together the crisis in the family climbs to a level not totally expected.
  If there is a criticism you could have it may be that the film is a bit too tight. It is a localized story on the farm and in the family but maybe could have used a bit more scope. Because of this the voice over in the beginning and end of the film seem contrived to add a larger scope when it should have been shown not told. Not that the voice over isn't beautifully written it is, writers Scarlett Amaris and Stanley have a good script and it is appreciated. The third act where everything really comes apart for the family and Cage and Arthur really carry the film, but the outcome is blunted a bit and the logic of how the threat is overcome is hard to accept. No spoilers here because this is definitely getting a recommendation for you to rent, buy or see it any way you can. Overall this is a wonderful science fiction, horror movie.  As always you can leave a comment or write to me at movies@edhovey.com