B-Movie Appraisal: Galaxy of Terror (1981)

In taking some time to research this movie I found that a clip of this film is on a DVD entitled "The 50 Worst Films Ever Made." This is so untrue that I don't even know how to take that seriously at all. Roger Corman certainly has a stigma for his movies, but this Roger Corman directed space horror film is not even a slightly bad film. It is a very good film. Yes, there is some roughness around the edges, the acting isn't always stellar, the sets and creatures are kind of ridiculous looking at times, and the plot leaves a lot to be desired, but this movie works very well for what it is.

And what it is is B-movie schlock. Or that's what it should be. That's what people think it is. That's what it's promoted as. That's where this movie's heart lies. But in reality it works really well as something other than just a crappy horror film. It has a heart to it, and that really makes all the difference in the world. It seems like the people involved actually cared about this film, obviously to varying degrees, but the attention to characters and details and just the quality that came out of this movie shows the quality of care put into it. I don't usually talk about stuff like this with movies, but it's impossible not to with this one. It works in so many more ways than I would have expected, being both subtle and different than many other things I have seen. It has visceral imagery and scenes (and gore effects in those scenes) that work a heck of a lot better than I would have ever thought they could. The movie even looks better (with a few obvious exceptions) than a lot of CGI effects from newer movies. I find that fascinating how something like this can actually look better than newer movies too. It's pretty neat. The worst effect in the movie is arguably the one that should have looked better, the Master's glowing face. I have no idea what a master is and why he has a red lightbulb for a head, but there it is, and it isn't a good effect.

As for characters, most of them are well done. Each has his or her own strengths and weaknesses, and the acting of each and every character carries some emotional depth if not the stellar acting capabilities of a Grade A film. Special mention goes out to Robert Englund as Ranger, Grace Zabriskie as the ship's captain, Trantor, and Taaffe O'Connell as Dameia. Robert Englund shows his acting chops before becoming famous for portraying Freddy Krueger in the Friday the 13th series of movies. He comes off as intelligent and willing to do anything to survive. He's the first character who survives his fear. Grace Zabriskie is fantastic as a captain who has clearly lost whatever sense she had. She very definitely has PTSD,and her acting may very well be the best in the movie. Taaffe O'Connell is an honorable mention because of the famous scene she has, the worm rape scene, which may in fact be the sole reason that the movie was so badly received. The other actors all do a fine job with Edward Albert, Erin Moran from Happy Days fame, and Ray Walston as the lead characters, but they don't go over and above in their acting like the three I mentioned previously do.

The movie's premise is basically that the ship Quest is sent to the planet Morganthus for the purpose of rescuing a crew stranded on the planet. The crew is found to be dead, but the Quest is stranded on the planet until all the bodies are recovered... or something. Anyway, the planet has a weird effect of showing the characters their worst fears and then killing them with those fears. That's the main premise of the film, and each character has to either survive their fears, mastering their own mind, or succumb to their fears. Later it is learned that the entire planet is a trial and a test to find the next Master. The story is pretty simple, but works quite well.

I enjoyed this movie a lot. The famous worm rape scene was probably the hardest part to watch, but most of the film has some great effects. The gore is well done. The costumes are pretty good. The ship looks good. The environments look good. The actors are good. Hell, there is little about this movie that I would say is bad. I have no idea how this movie found its way on a list of the worst of all time. I'm sure I can name way too many movies that I've seen even semi-recently that are so much worse than this one. I can't even think of negative things to really even point out. Most of the movie is quality inside and out. I have to recommend this film, especially if you like the B-movie styled films, but even if you don't it's a pretty good movie to watch. Not too many scares really, but the gore and the effects will certainly be enough to show a pretty good adventure.

Movie Appraisal: Possession (1981)

So, I was about to watch and review the American version of Dark Water and then, seeing as how that movie is pretty terrible, almost ridiculously painful to watch, I stopped and decided to watch Possession instead. So, I'm watching this movie, intrigued by its style and a very young Sam Neill as the male lead, and my mouth drops open, my eyes as wide as they could be, fear and bile are rising in my throat and a thought comes into my head, a thought that seems to be the driving force behind this movie: OhboywhatdidIgetmyselfintohere?

Okay, I think if the image above doesn't tell you that this review may involve some graphic images, then I'm certainly telling you now. The movie is fairly graphic at times, with some of the hardest scenes to watch that I've seen in a very long time. Slasher movies with unrealistic gore and all those gorn films that exist out there have nothing on the methodical and paranoid way that this film drives its creepiness and blurs the edges between reality and fiction. And it does it in such a subtle way, causing the watcher to be dropped down a rabbit hole from which there is no escape. With Sam Neill and Isabelle Adjani in the starring roles, this movie has a brilliant cast, amazing acting, and a story that screams paranoia and distress through its every pore.

The cinematography is unsettling to the extent of making the audience itself feel unease at what is coming next. I kept thinking about the scenes that might be coming next, what could happen. And the fact is that this movie surpassed every expectation by bringing out something more disturbing than I had in my own mind every time. The fears and threats that are brought out in this movie incredible. I don't know if I've ever seen a movie that works quite like this or that even feels quite like this one. Everything makes you squirm, from the simple environment to the ways characters act. The character of Anna, the wife, is particularly hard to watch or to be involved with at all. Any person with a significant other who happens to be female will find fear in that character, the cold-bloodedness, the insanity, the beauty mixed with the absolute danger. I've never found myself frightened of small and pretty women, but with the acting here blended with the utter insanity of the character, Anna has entered my own personal nightmares as a demon herself. A man-killing demon.

In some ways I think this movie may in fact be unreviewable. I spent half of the movie (at least half) with my mouth or eyes as wide opened as they could be, both shocked and awed by what I saw. It's so unlike anything else. It's like a movie about insanity that actively involves the viewer in that insanity. I'm not comfortable enough with my own sanity to watch this movie with discomfort. I don't think anybody is.

This movie seems to be an allegory of a disintegrating marriage, separation, and the fact that some people can never work out as a couple, but the movie is damn well near impenetrable at times anyway even with that knowledge. I mean I simply think back on Anna's apartment and the scenes therein or the calm way characters deal with absolute terror, murder, and the most twisted sorts of acts imaginable, and I find this movie viscerally mind-shattering. The twisted and complicated plot, the doppelganger characters, the way that characters react to problems, and the horrific elements of the film are all very intense and are all very confusing, and create a story that literally feels more terrifying than most other movies, even without absolutely horrific images, monsters, or... My point is that there is a subtle horror here, one that hits a person in the back of the mind rather than in the front of the eyes. Focusing on this movie, I found myself needing a break from the intensity, only to find myself drawn back in for another round. Movies like this are very few and far between for me, and that makes it even harder to say that I have no idea whether I liked the movie or not.

I think a few good comparisons in films might be Mulholland Drive by David Lynch or Lost Highway by the same. Possession has a very Lynch-like feel to it despite being a much creepier and crazier ride than either of those movies. Although I will admit that I had a very similar feeling to Mulholland Drive after watching it as I did to Possession. Both films gave me a lot to think about, and both were not necessarily a film I came out loving. In some ways, to a video gaming crowd, the film also reminded me of Silent Hill 2 and its plot. I can't really explain the connection except that the feeling of the two movies somehow seemed similar to me. I really can't say why, just a brain thought I had, I guess.

Andrzej Żuławski directs this film beautifully and almost sadly. There is an intensity to every scene, and it is also very hectic even while nothing is actively going on. The filming itself is very different, evoking Lynch and also other directors who have chosen to explore the mind and its facets. The imagery is wonderful, blending mundane and absolute horror without alienating itself. It's very reminiscent of Jacob's Ladder is some very specific ways and that is probably the strongest comparative piece I know of. I have heard that Repulsion by Polanski would be a similar comparative piece, but although I own it, I've never actually watched it. So, I have a very hard time comparing it.

I had never heard of Possession before, even being the psychological horror fan that I am. I'm incredibly glad that I found it and could watch it, but at the same time it's almost as if my brain has gone through a change by watching it. I feel like I'll never be the same, never look at a relationship... or for that matter a woman... the same way again. There is such an emphasis on a lack of knowledge between two people, lack of trust as well, showing both as hypocrites looking for perfection and instead getting a normal person as a spouse or significant other. It's a very powerful message, one that I have a hard time not squirming at in one way or another.

I don't know how much I should actually say about the movie. It's heavily metaphorical, but plays as if it is a plotted out story. The problem is that although the story is not hard to follow, the captivating element is not the story or the plot, but rather the interactions between characters and those characters interacting with their environments as well. Mark, played by Sam Neill, plays an undeniably Sam Neill role, both crazy and sane, hero and villain, blending the lines as he has proven time and time again that he can do so well. This is certainly a wonderful preview of the things that would come from his career. The way he nonchalantly cuts himself on the electric steak knife, cold eyes, no wince in pain... that image will stay with me for a very long time.

To point out just how... how tough this movie is to review and watch and... and enjoy, I guess... I'll describe a scene: Anna moans at a statue of Jesus while holding a bag for a straight minute, begging or pleading perhaps. Then a scene goes by and she absolutely freaks out in a subway station for minutes as liquid pours out of her. This is the story of her miscarriage. Think about that for a minute. Those first two sentences are literally Anna telling Mark how she miscarried. Oh my... how can I even, for a minute, begin to express words that mean anything to this movie? How can I go and say I understand it as well as I should?

It's a brilliant movie, in my opinion, but difficult to follow. I assume with repeat viewings I'll get more out of it, but I'm going to find myself hardpressed to watch it again anytime soon.

Anyway, I recommend it to people who like psychological horror, but with the warning that it is a really screwed up movie, one that really might affect you in an unexpected way. I think I liked it, but I really can't promise that I did. That's weird when I can't even decide whether I liked it or not. Really weird...

Anyway, I've been doing this blog for two years today. I've had a crazy time doing it. I really wanted to get a review out today and since Dark Water sucked pretty badly (although I'll probably review it) I thought that an actually deep and interesting movie would be a good one for a two year review. Oh, and if any readers have any questions on the movie, ask in the comment section, and I'll try to answer as best as I can. It's a really cool movie to debate and talk about.

Movie Appraisal: The Beyond (E tu vivrai nel terrore! L'aldilà) (The Seven Doors of Death) (1981)

The Beyond, an Italian horror film by Lucio Fulci with Lovecraftian influences is an interesting study in horror and gore. The film takes place in Louisiana and it actually does a good job with the setting, something that I think it a huge improvement over many modern films that attempt to capitalize on the rural setting of horror... like the terrible The Reaping, which is easily one of my least favorite films that I have ever seen.

This film starts off with a lot of "blood and gore," and a fairly brutal death scene of a certain male. It could be considered to be very gory if the blood effects didn't look so obviously fake, which is fine with me since I don't like incredibly gory films anyway. So, the fake gore actually raises my opinion of this film quite a bit.

The Book of Eibon also plays a role. It is a fictional book created and used by H. P. Lovecraft in some of his stories. It's one of those forbidden books like the Necronomicon, for instance. That's primarily where I say that there are Lovecraftian influences are from.

The main character (Catriona MacColl) is interesting and plays her part interesting, with a combination between  innocent and not very nice at all. It's very rare to see that outside of a David Lynch film, for instance. Then again, I've never been incredibly partial to Italian horror films, with this one only being my second or third one that I've ever watched.

The lack of dialogue in some parts is incredibly effective, relying instead on sounds and music to get points across, which, in my opinion, any great horror movie should be able to do.

Then, the main male, the handsome, square-jawed doctor (who I also think is probably the coroner),  is introduced. He takes on the role of the one who doesn't actually believe what's going on in the hotel.

So, this movie really does have everything, ghosts, zombie-like horrors from beyond the grave, blind girls, fairly horrific death scenes, and really weirdly acted and unnerving scenes. I mean, the movie does become fairly unnerving. You just know that bad things are going to happen to every character, and you have to watch it. You have no choice. And there's something almost sadistically wrong with that and yet amazingly right as well.

Oh, man, there are freaking spiders and this is not cool.This is surprisingly not cool and kind of uncomfortable to watch. Why are there giant spiders out of nowhere? What are they going to....? Oh, no... Gosh, those spiders have some amazingly strong mandibles and pulling power. I had never thought that they were so strong before. Wow, that whole mutilation scene was graphic, hard to watch, and really effective. Man, that was good.

And with books and pages of books appearing and disappearing at will, the whole question of what is real and what isn't real obviously must be asked, as well as the other universes theories... I mean, these are all things that come to mind. They have to to anybody who's paying any attention and knows anything about the source material.

Zombies, why did there have to be zombies? Man, that blind lady ghost thing, Emily, really does a great job at acting both horrified and blood-thirsty. Her dog is also kind of awesome, then he... uh... he rips her throat out and murders her... or something...? Because now he's a zombie, I assume? Huh... did I mention that this film makes only marginal sense at times?

The ending sequence, or about the last half-hour of the film or so, is completely surreal, becoming simultaneously a zombie movie and something insanely weird as well. A strange fog persists throughout and people, real people, are few and far between except for the two leads. As the movie ends they enter a landscape seen before in the film, that of a painting that the artist who was basically lynched at the beginning of the film, was painting. It's absolutely beautiful in execution, even though it is also incredibly dark as they both go blind, wandering a painting with bodies on the ground, presumably forever.

So, this movie is all over the place, but is surprisingly effective. I tend to like 1980s horror films because they try so hard to do so much, and I have to respect that. They really drive the idea of an actually effective horror film home. Yes, this is a very dark film with a very unhappy ending, but it has so many wonderful, almost ethereal set-pieces, beautiful in their in its horrific imagery and elements.

Is this a truly scary movie? Not really. It has elements that could be considered scary, the gore, the whole philosophy of horror it presents, but ultimately many of the scares are easy to see coming, and the ones that aren't tend to be of the jump scare variety. Couple that with the terrible screaming from the entire female cast... (What is it about Italian horror that it has to feature a woman screaming so often that it becomes annoying rather than scary?)... and a soundtrack that at times would seem more at home in a Spaghetti western, and this film seems odd in its horror.

Yes, I liked this movie, but I also like surreal horror. I think it's wonderful, but for the person who is not expecting it, I think this would be a very strange film indeed. I have to restate that this film is gorgeous all around though. The directing and cinematography are incredibly well done, and even the dubbing is fairly effective, only being noticeable within the film once or twice. Lucio Fulci, you have exceeded my expectations with The Beyond and I commend you for it. I've seen other Italian horror films and they didn't thrill me whereas... well... this one kind of did. I was happy to have seen it and I wouldn't mind checking out more of his films to hopefully see more of the same.

Anyway, check it out if you get the chance. You'll see a highly effective and beautifully done horror/gore/zombie film in the process.

Movie Appraisal: The Evil Dead (1981)

The Evil Dead is one of the better horror movies of all time. Sure, I can argue that it looks like a very low-budget film, it acts like a really low-budget film, and besides Bruce Campbell the actors are mostly terrible, but this movie also has some great things going for it.

I love this movie. It shows me that Sam Raimi is an actual good director for the most part. I really couldn't have cared less about his Spider-Man movies because I hate Spider-Man that stupid suit-wearing, wise-cracking, Spider-Man... I don't know why my reaction to Spider-Man is so visceral, but I just hate everything about him. I kind of wish the character had never been born... but I'm getting off topic.

The Evil Dead series is one of the better known comedy-horror hybrids of movies. I mean, this franchise also put BRUCE CAMPBELL (AKA THE GREATEST MAN ALIVE) on the list of best actors to ever grace the screen. You may think I'm showing my sarcastic side here, but I actually really like Bruce Campbell as an actor. He does a great job in every movie I've ever seen him in and that's more than I can say about Viggo Mortensen or Kurt Russell... as examples.

Anyway, this whole franchise is mostly very good. The first movie, which is the one I'm reviewing here, is easily the least known and hardest to find. The third movie, Army of Darkness, is usually thought of as the best of the three... but I strongly disagree on that count. I mean, it's not as if I hate Army of Darkness, but it's a little too campy for my taste. I'd rather have horror with my horror movie and Army of Darkness is a campy horror-action film, which is perfectly watchable... just not the type of movie I really like.

The second movie, The Evil Dead II, is also very good. Hell, the whole franchise is... but it ups the campiness from the first movie up to eleven... which is fine for the movie it's trying to be, but a little upsetting because The Evil Dead is actually quite a wonderful horror movie.

Now, I'm sure you've seen, or at least heard of, movies that have plots like: Four college students go up to a cabin for a weekend of sex and fun and then something happens. In this case it's that they play a recording of the guy, a professor, who previously live there, and wake up an evil from the woods when the professor's voice says an incantation to wake it up. Yeah, it's kind of a weird way to get stuff started up, but it works really effectively.

You might think that this movie is campy and full of hilarious things all over the place... but it isn't and it doesn't. This is a purely horror film from beginning to end. And it works really well. You start liking the characters (especially Ashley Williams played by the inimitable Bruce Campbell) and fear for them as the trees and the dead come back to life to kill them all.

It works effectively because you know they're all screwed, but you hope that they make it until morning. I mean... at least one of them must make it out of the cabin alive, right? Right?

Well... sure... Ash makes it out of the cabin... but he doesn't get very far...

The filmography in this movie is fantastic. I have to admit that straightaway. In this movie you can easily see just what kind of filmmaker Sam Raimi was going to be, and what I mean by that is that he's a really good one. He started off a whole new way of shooting horror films with this movie... and even though most of his other "horror" films are just campy action flicks, this movie, as definite horror, really was a genre type of starter on many of the same brand of horror films and the way one directs horror films.

I'm going to state something else here too... this movie is scary and gory. It has scenes that are uncomfortable to watch and the fear is very real. You kind of feel like you don't want to go into the woods at night after watching this film. I like The Evil Dead as the horror movie it truly is... I only wish that its sequels had been more of the same despite their quality.

Well, those are my two cents. Check it out if you haven't.