Late Phases (2014) Horror Werewolf

Late Phases (2014) - A blind retired Vietnam veteran is moved by his son into a retirement community. Soon after he and his neighbors are attacked by a werewolf. Ambrose (Nick Damici) is not one to let his disability get in his way and starts investigating. What he learns is the monthly attacks at the development at the edge of town are seen as animal attacks. He is a competent man defined by twenty years in the army. Instead of hiding and hoping everything will be alright like some of his neighbors he takes action. Working his aging body into as much shape as possible while preparing for the next full moon by learning his surroundings and creating defenses. He is a man willing to make the sacrifices necessary even knowing he may not survive the outcome.
   It is also a story about the elderly and the perceived notion that they are a burden and disposable. After the first attack we learn that this is a regular occurrence in this neighborhood of Cresent Bay. Seen as animal attacks the police are less than enthusiastic about patrolling the area. The children of the residents are feel they either have no choice but to leave the parents in danger or are so disconnected that they are not participating with their parents in life, just when they are needed most.  The well defined issues between Ambrose and his son Will (Ethan Embry) speak to the time we may all have to face when our children no longer see us as vital in their lives. The isolation is necessary for the plot since this must be a community isolated from the world. Where no help will be coming, where the stories of the victims will be questioned as those of the old and incompetent. Will is worried about his father and the cracks in their relationship eventually ends in a way further isolating his father.
  The red herring in this story is Father Roger (Tom Noonan) at least for a little while when Ambrose smells the smoke on the killers hoodie. Since he knows that the minister smokes he is the one writer Eric Stolze wants us to think about. Problem with the writing is that its about three scenes later that the red herring is exposed and the real killer is revealed. The end of the second act, so it would have probably been better if the hints about Father Roger came a bit sooner in the story. It could have built to a confidence about the killer through the eyes of Ambrose and then dispelled with a turn. Instead it comes across as a bit anticlimactic. Instead the turn is that the killer is "in the know" as he sees Ambrose return with his silver bullets and appears to recognize the store name on the bag. Then things get interesting for the climax as the community is transformed for the final scenes. It makes the most out of the approach, where on one hand the reveal could have been more deceptive Stolze still turns the table a bit with an unconventional plan by the werewolf.
  Its a wonderful ending that this film pulls off, unexpected in scope and with nice effects. It is said of werewolf films that if you don't show at least one transformation then you have failed. This film does not fail although the length and action of the climax are limited by the handicap of the main character. Concern for his neighbors could be Ambrose's undoing in the final scenes of this film. The hilarity of the security guard's reaction to seeing a werewolf is very enjoyable and totally within character. The wonderfully ridiculous but at the same time believable final fight scenes between Ambrose and beasts could have been longer.
   Yes a blind man can fight back, of course we learned that the blind are not helpless years before with Audrey Hepburn in Wait Until Dark, but still she did not fight a werewolf.  Sacrifice again come to the forefront and when all is said and done the viewer is left feeling like they saw a well crafted film. Well executed by one of my favorite directors Adrain Garcia Bogliano (Cold Sweat, Here Comes the Devil) who keeps the pacing lively and hits all the right beats.The acting is solid with lead Nick Damici pulling off playing older than he is. Certainly they needed an actor with the physical ability to deal with the role and in Damici (Stake Land, We Are What We Are) they got that (since Jack Palance is dead). Ethan Embry (The Guest, Cheap Thrills) also is good as the son with so many things to worry about when it comes to his father. Also of note is Noonan (More wonderful films than can be mentioned here.) who is a professional, competent presence and Lance Guest as the somewhat tortured soul and main bad guy.
  So a recommendation for this film not the most perfect but certainly very enjoyable werewolf story. 

Here Comes the Devil (2012)

Here Comes the Devil (2012) - The final film in this set a dark tale of family secrets and devil possession. So far each film has presented me something new and interesting, Rooms for Tourists the secret of the little village the girls arrive in. In Cold Sweat the unique way the victims are killed. In Penumbra the wonderful twist in the final ceremony during the eclipse. Well,  Here Comes the Devil continues with a family secret revealed. It is creepy and built with little "tells" being shown as we move towards the third act. It is a shame the inevitable ending scene is telegraphed a bit too much. Don't get me wrong I really enjoyed this film; It is a compelling and disturbing tale of a family that is creepy and in the end tragic. In fact I have enjoyed all the films in this recent set and can be counted as a Adrian Garcia Bogliano fan at this point. The horror wheat fields are full of chafe so when you find the grains of goodness you should make a point of appreciating them. These film have been a hearty meal of horror goodness and I look forward to future releases.
 In the opening scene we see a couple of women hot and heavy into each other on a bed. When the post coital talk is done one of the women is attacked brutally while downstairs. The killer is injured by the surviving woman and runs off to a rocky hill filled with caves. It is a harsh and brutal start and Director Adrian Garcia Boliano says in the commentary that he was looking for the style of 1970's Italian thrillers where the film opens more like a second act instead of the first. The idea is to have strong scenes that leave the viewer thinking about them, or with an emotional charge that lingers into the next scene. The music by Julio Pillado certainly adds to the feeling and throughout is a strength of the picture. It certainly does what is intended, from the surprising love making to open the film, two blurred bodies come into focus as two woman, Sandra (Jessica Iris) and Abril (Dana Dorel) are making love. When they are finished they casually talk about their relationship before one goes off downstairs to a violent and shocking turn. It definitely leaves the viewer wondering "What the fuck am I in for?" It also establishes a location that will become central to the main story.
  When a family of four are out for a picnic the two children on the verge of puberty venture out on their own to explore some caves on the hillside, they go missing over night creating a nightmare for the parents. Guilt ridden but relieved when they are returned the next day the parents take them home determined with a new appreciation for the family. Built into the story are ideas about the first sexual experience a young people have. The parents Sol (Laura Caro) and Felix (Francisco Barreiro) before realizing the children are missing have an uncomfortable (for us viewers) heavy petting session in their car while they describe their first times showing their privates to the opposite sex. We watch there struggle with the guilt of their actions even though the  incident really is a faultless one. This is a parallel to their own children who are at the same ages the parents were when they started exploring sex. The parents never make the connection between the age of their first experiences and the ages of their children. It is a foreshadowing of the secrets that are later learned of by Sol.
  This film is surprising in its turns and the extremes that the characters go. After the return of their children the concerned parents watch and see that the children are not acting all together normally. Taking them to a psychologist they learn that it is possible that some kind of traumatic sexual incident could have taken place. I know at this point if you had not seen the opening scenes you would think this is a family drama. The parents putting pieces together figure out that the strange guy they saw in the gas station was staring and a bit too interested in their daughter. Lots of things build the feeling that the incident must have to do with him. Is this the secret that must be dealt with? Confirmed by the reaction of their children to seeing the man again from their car only confirmed their ideas. Felix and Sol pay a visit to the man and from this point on all bets are off in this movie. I was not expecting this particular scene and it was a wonderful horror surprise.  With the motivation of confirming that this man harmed their daughter the parents are not taking this to the police and the film turns as the concerned parents become vigilantes. Unexpected this turn leads the couple down a road neither will ever be able to come back from.
  Still the film has more surprises for it's audience with the introduction of a supernatural element. The exposition for this is set up early in the film with a gas station attendant telling the couple about the bad mojo of the hill the kids disappeared on. This is always a horror movie with the trapping necessary to keep you believing it, even when the drama of the family or the investigations of the police come into play. It is just has more to it than your average horror film in plot twists and turns and character motivation. Incidents with flashing lights and strange behavior by the children Sara (Michele Garcia) and Aldolfo (Alan Martinez) keep it firmly in the horror realm while the character developments make you feel for the family. The stylish and terrifying experience of baby sitter Marcia (Barbara Perrin Rivemar) stands out as an example of the Devil doing evil deeds and of the filmmakers command of the craft. Although not explicitly stated as a evil spirit rape scene I was pretty sure that that is what it was. After viewing the film and seeing the extra it was confirmed with an even longer and more stylish deleted scene.
  Really the flaws, as I saw them have to do with the Mother's reaction when she figures out the kids secret. She is way too internal in how she deals with it. Instead of filling in her husband on what she believes she instead keeps that information to herself. She develops an entire plan for revealing the horrors of the ending to him but never stops to think that what he will think is going on may be different than what she intends. The secret is a big one and I can't believe this would not be a major conversation as soon as it is learned. Now it could probably be argued that after the experience the parents shared in confronting Lucio (David Arturo Cabezud),  (yes I purposely did not describe the events here) that there could be a strain between the couple. Felix after that incident is seen more of getting on with life. Returning to work and although nervous about the police looking into events concerning Lucio is starting to get back to life. While Sol carries the plot for a while being the investigator in the strange behavior of her children. It works for the plot for her not to be filling in her husband on all the goings on she has had around them but it sort of telegraphed the final scene. Her big discovery at the end of the film and her orchestration to reveal it to Felix could only end one way. He did not have all the information that she did and his reaction unfortunately was all too predictable.
  Still the film is a really well put together piece of horror with lots of cool little thing for you to take away from it. There is family drama, guilt and reaction to it, vigilantism, supernatural possession and other secrets not to be revealed here. It is worth the price of admission and this viewer already owns the Blu Ray. So if you are looking for original horror find this director's stuff and I am sure you will enjoy it.

Penumbra (2011) Horror cult

Penumbra (2011) - Well the third installment in the Adrian Garcia Bogliano athon is certainly a clever film. It sets the view up with almost an antihero and then flips the expected plot course on its head and then you realized why she is so unlikable. Using the conflict in the relationship between many Argentinian born residents and Spanish nationals who own and live in the country to draw lines in this film was very smart. Not being from there I am not totally sure how much the two groups do or do not get along but it really worked in how it was presented in this film. It allows the main character Marga (Christina Brondo) not only to be drawn as a rude pushy European but to be seen in the Buenos Aires neighbor in which the story takes place to be a real outsider. This outsider status is essential to the film's final outcome and is really handled well by writers Adrian and Ramiro Garcia Bogliano.
   The story centers around Marga a very busy business woman who is trying to quickly rent an apartment she inherited. The character is built as a too busy and often annoyed, pushy Spaniard who although she needs to deal with this personal chore does not have the time. Pressure from her boss, and backstabbing of her coworker makes the simple task of renting out the apartment a bit more to handle than she wants. Constantly having to make and receive calls she is distracted by her phone regularly in the film. It is a theme that runs through these writers movies. In Rooms for tourists it is the phone that is the focus of salvation for the lead character. In Cold Sweat the internet is used to attract victims to the torture house and also to help the protagonists as they navigate the dangerous conditions there. Here it is a large reason why Marga ends up not seeing the signs that something may not be right with the real estate man Jorge (Berta Muniz) as she interacts with him about the apartment.
  Marga is set up to be a character who is not very likable and this is essential to the story. First we see her being bothered by a homeless man. She is offended but in this tight knit neighborhood the people who live and work there see him as harmless so when she is pushy with the local police officer in talking about the homeless man he sort of takes her side. Her snippy remarks about the locals in front of the cop will never help her get on his good side. Marga talks on the phone to people back in Spain and her disdain for Argentina comes through with sharp tones that anyone overhearing her will make her seem like an asshole. She sees it as a primitive country compared to where she is from and thinks the people are uncultured. (You might compare her to the Ugly American stereotype if this were a US character.) We also see her interacting with a woman who lives in the apartment.  The woman (Mirella Pascual) makes an effort to connect with the Spaniard, a second generation immigrant she still holds some of her parents love for Spain. Their family left during the civil war but she still holds a connection. Marga is a bit dismissive and after being nice to get what she wants rudely ushers herself out of the apartment. (The funny side incident with the fish was really good.) All in all the character is not likable and so as the main plot develops the viewer finds themselves wanting her to notice the danger developing around her and maybe hoping that the plot will give her a story arch where she learns not to be so dislikable.
  That main plot develops in the apartment as it becomes apparent that Jorge is not who he says he is. Obvious to us in the audience it takes a while for the perpetually distracted Marga to catch on. Other associates of Jorge's arrive, Victoria ( former child star Camila Bordonada), Angela (Victoria Witemberg), Alberto (Diego Cremonesi) all with the promise of a lucrative rental contract from their boss Salva (Arnaldo Andre). Marga should have been nervous very early but the idea of having the business taken care of in a day and for a lot more money than she hoped kept her believing even when stories stopped making sense. Finally when the gig is up and our protagonist realizes that things have gone horribly wrong it is too late. She is captured by the group and is witness to the reason they came to the apartment.
 I will not spoil that here because there is definitely a recommendation coming from this blog to see this film. Let me say though the first scene of the film sets up the climax but I was surprised by the direction it took. The epilogue is equally surprising but when you then think back on how it was all set up it makes great sense. I may be short changing Ramiro Garcia Bogliano but it is not intentional. He has been a writer and co-director on this film and writer on "Cold Sweat" and "Rooms for Tourists" so I am sure a lot of the very entertaining writing is his. I really enjoyed this film and will continue my look at this director in my next installment, "Here comes the Devil"

Cold Sweat (2010) Horror psychos

Cold Sweat (2010) - Continuing on the switch to the movies of Adrian Garcia Bogliano I get to "Cold Sweat" a story of a couple radicals of right wing anarchy who years after they have past their prime carry on a sick and twisted vision of creating utopia through torture. Bogliano like in "Rooms for Tourists" uses a house as the tight claustrophobic setting for the fear to come. The opening of the film give us a bit of a history lesson in Argentinian politics. Scenes and images of right and left wing protest flash across the screen telling the story of 25 cases of stolen dynamite and the torture and abuse rendered by sides to try to find it. The right had the Triple A, an anticommunist death squad that operated under President Isabel Peron in the mid 1970's. It is an origin story for a couple of the characters in the film but when viewing it you really don't know that yet. The intro although useful to understanding the motivations of the bad guys in this film is secondary as they are the only ones affected by that story. It is like showing scenes of pacific fighting during WWII just before you tell a story about a Japanese soldier who is still fighting the war 50 years later. This story is very similar, the two old men who are the antagonists of the story are still fighting the Communist in a society that has already moved on.
  The modern day story of these two men is introduced by two other characters Ramon (Facundo Espinosa) and Ali (Marina Glezer) who are working together to find Ramon's ex-girlfriend Jackie (Camila Velasco) who went missing after hooking up with a blonde guy on the internet. Ali and Ramon are outside the house of the old men and little do they know the house of horrors awaiting them inside the house. They think this blonde guy is a person who Jackie is fooling around with and Ramon is obsessed with catching them. He has looked through her email and chats and he and Ali have tracked him to this house. Ali goes in as another flirty girl to meet the blonde guy and hopefully have a look around. When after entering the house a white haired old guy (Omar Gioiosa) sneaks up behind her and knocks her out you known something is horribly amiss.
  What this leads to is a story of a couple old agents still fighting the war against communism in a very unique way. They could be said to just be crazy at this point and not really in touch with the reality of the world but even so they are committed to their cause. Can you call killing young people a cause? We enter their world with victim number one (Noelia Vergini) harnessed up hanging in a room. Walker using old guy (Omar Musa) puts a drop of acid down where the young woman's head can be moved. She is terrified, we don't know it yet but he has put nitroglycerine on the girl's head and if it comes in contact with the acid it will cause it to explode. The scene is a very good and gory example of setting the stage. Ali also captive in the room knows the stakes after watching the demise of the first victim and when a drop of nitro is put on her forehead she is clear of the implications. I have never seen this as a murder method and liked the original (at least for me) way of execution.
Unfortunately what follows can only be termed a horrible mess of poor decisions by the protagonists of the film. When Ali does not come out of the house he looks to go in through a back window to find her. He is clumsy and not really brave but manages to get to her in the maze of an apartment. I am always frustrated with the idea that tech savvy people can't seem to make a simple phone call to the police instead of putting themselves in jeopardy. I am not saying that the film making is bad, I just hate the horror trope of people going in to the horror situation on their own without first calling for help. The actual sneaking around the house are pretty tense and suspenseful scenes, especially when Ramon ends up behind a two way mirror where he witnesses the first on screen killing. Ramon does just that setting up a film where he and Ali sneak around but can't seem to find a way to leave. Ali after being freed by Ramon wanders about never finding a way out. Ramon still seeking the Jackie decides to stay around until he finds her. Shit if he had called the police in the beginning all of this would have been resolved in an hour, the old men arrested and everyone that could be save would have been. Instead we get a fairly enjoyably tense game of cat and mouse based on these horrible decisions.
  Baxter the white haired old man is still fit enough to be a physical threat but the walker guy is not and Ramon could have over powered him anytime but instead just sneaks around avoiding contact. When he finds Jackie covered in nitro and scared he has to problem solve getting her out without blowing her up. The film like I said is somewhat unique and entertaining. As we move into the third act the old men discover the young people and we get a final gory showdown that is worth the look. There is also some (unintentional?) humor when the nitro covered Jackie is dragging herself across the floor trying not to drip the explosive off her skin and is being pursued ever so slowly by the walker guy. He has a syringe of acid and is trying to blow her up by squirting it at the nitro on her body. It is the slowest chase scene in the history of film but even still well done on a movie making level.

A decent film I thought it was original and fun with unlikely villains and some messages about how there is a danger in modern technology. Early in the film we see both sides of technology, Ramon reading the messages of Jackie learns she is going to meet this blonde guy and affectively cheat on him. Also though with Ali they track the IP to this house and the benefits of the internet is used to find the missing woman. Jackie was attracted to the house by chatting with a blonde guy but that guy another captive is not even really communicating with the girl. Instead we learn that the walker guy is the brains behind it. He sees youth of the day as stupidly too trusting and exploits the internet to attract victims.These old men use the internet against a generation too trusting of chat rooms and avatars it is quite a message. Then when Ramon goes into the torture room to save Ali he quickly uses his phone to look up what to do to neutralized nitroglycerine, a good use of technology in a tight situation. There was no cliche loss of signal or anything like that. A draw back is the strange cannibal women of the cellar, who are never really explained. I guess past victims who were never killed, or maybe the way the old men got rid of the bodies?
  So I will recommend this film it has some cool ideas and is original enough to keep you interested. Having to overlook the stupid behavior of a couple of the characters is challenging but still I think the tension created by the director out weighs those flaws. So far in this new  Bogliano themed week I am pretty please. There is a lot of originality, a definite skill for creating tension and what seems a love for making horror movies. I look forward to the next choice for this this director Penumbra.  So enjoy.

Rooms for Tourists (2004) horror travel

Rooms for Tourists (2004) -  This very low budget Argentinian film by Adrian Garcia Boliano is a horror film through and through. The idea of religious people deciding who deserves life and who does not is an interesting contradiction in this film. Done in black and white with a deep throbbing score the film presents a frightening mood that is thick compelling. Its imagery if stark and scary with the main character Theda (Elena Siritto) having visions of brutal acts. Little do we know that those initial dreams all will tie into the story about to unfold. Film making wise it is a clever trick, while it seems completely unrelated at least for a while each of these scenes of torture and death are later revealed to be a history of the village the film takes place in. Theda is a nervous wreak and is jumpy from the start obviously out of her element. When she and four other girls have to get a connecting train in a small town they are thrown into events connected to their unbeknown shared secret.
The first most striking thing about this film is how the music makes interaction with the locals very ominous. Instead of watching people go about normal interactions about train schedules that we would think is nothing, instead there is a pall, an idea the music gives us that things are not right in this village. When they see the local church and the ultra conservative preacher delivering his hell for sinners sermon they are all a bit more on edge. Theda's nerves actually help her in this film. She is so worried about having missed the connecting train that she starts to look for a phone to call home. She manages to call her father early in the film but can only leave a message for him to call her back at 7 am but will she survive the night?
Low angle shot camera shots and shadows which are more engaging in black and white add to the horror feel of the film. When five young women miss their connecting train they are thrown together and offered rooms at a local house. In this small town the populous is devout in their following of the fire and brimstone preacher you know that it will effect these young ladies before the film is over.  At this point I am thinking more of Children of the Corn where people from the outside come into a small town and are put in jeopardy.When we learn that Elena is struggling with the fact that she is pregnant we are given a hint to the mystery. Taking the rooms in the house and after a ominous dinner with the moralizing preacher we are set for the action.
  When film student Silvia (Mariela Mujica) is murdered with a cleaver in a wonderfully gruesome scene the remaining girls suddenly realize that it may be too late to escape the same fate. Finding the house boarded up and all the doors locked the young women must try to find a way to survive the night. Blonde and naive Ruth (Brenda Vera) struggles with her emotions and soon has more than the dark to worry about. Punk girl Lydia (Victoria Witemberg) saves the day but how long can the women's luck hold. Played in the closed up house with lights turned off the with only small lighting sources the film builds a nice claustrophobic feel. Add in tricks and booby traps of the locals and you have a fairly suspenseful little horror film.
  Director Boliano does a nice job in the writing with brother Romero Garcia Boliano to have the characters fight for survival not be too predictable. The girls for the most part stick together and try to problem solve the situation. They use there small group to fight back so the film does not end up feeling like a slaughterfest. It is always a plus to have strong female characters something a lot of male writers seem to have a problem writing. The nice saved at the last minute conclusion in the town was a bit on the nose but certainly set up early in the film. Then the conclusion reenforces the well thought out early imagery. The director does a really nice job making this a suspenseful and ultimately enjoyable little film. I have always found overly religious people just a bit scary and this film does everything to solidify those feelings. The music is excellent by Rodrigo Franco and the skill of this new writing tandem shows through. Now I have to note that this is far from a Hollywood film so there is no gloss to be found. My recommendation comes as a lover of horror. I have to be critical of micro budget horror so often that it is refreshing when someone does it right. Even though this is a subtitled movie (which I know a lot of my readers don't like) and it is really a micro budget, I have to recommend it. In fact since it throws off my vacation horror theme just a bit I think I will end that strand of reviews and focus on the boliano brothers a bit more and review their other two films Cold Sweat and Pnumbra with an eye to catching their latest "Here Comes the Devil" on PFV.