Movie Appraisal: The Tall Man (2012)

Bait-and-switch thy name is The Tall Man. So, while I'd rather not spoil this movie, I think I'm going to go and say what this movie is and what this movie isn't. It is an incredibly thoughtful film that works on many different levels, both moralistic levels and philosophical levels. It is a mystery story without any real mystery... I mean, you'll figure out what's going on before it's spelled out, but you have to go along with the ride for a while. It's a really, really good movie. It has some great acting in it, primary from Jessica Biel, who is fast becoming one of my favorite actresses (I also love her performance in The Illusionist.) and Stephen McHattie, who was absolutely wonderful in this movie and another movie I loved called Pontypool. This movie is not a horror film, although it has elements of a horror film. It is not a thriller psychological or otherwise. It is not a film unwatchable in the depths of night. There is no real fear here despite the tagline of the movie being "FEAR TAKES A NEW SHAPE." No it doesn't movie. You are misdirecting and lying to me. If you're going into this thinking, "OH BOY! This is an adaptation of Slender Man!" you are going to be sorely disappointed. It's a classic bait-and-switch. You say it's going to be Slender Man and then change it up so that it's a rather intriguing and screwed up plot.

I can't even go and say much about the film. I wish I could, but it would be such a disservice to the two major twists in the plot. Suffice it to say that the plot here is literally fantastic. It drives a point home... kind of... and the heroes and villains... well, it's hard to tell which is which by the end. There's definitely a gray area there... you know, instead of being a movie with EVIL SLENDER MAN STEALING THE BAY-BAYS. The movie is quite brilliant though. Despite not quite being a horror film, it's certainly billed as such. I was slightly disappointed in the film- the lighting was too bright and everything was really confusing- until I realized it was not the kind of film I had expected. Once I knew it was a different film my expectations changed, and I started to change my tune about the film. I never once thought that this was a bad film though, rather I wanted more thrills but was instead rewarded with thoughts swimming into my head. Not a bad trade truth be told.

The directing here, by Pascal Laugier, is well done and unobtrusive. He allows the actors to do what they do best while doing very few fancy tricks. The well lit scenes betray that this isn't quite a horror movie, but he can be forgiven for that. It isn't a horror movie. As for the actors themselves, Jessica Biel shines so brightly in her part of Julia Dunning. She makes a complicated and complex role have many different facets and work as both character and person, something very few movies seem to be able to do. I felt for her character at times. And her performance stunned me. I cannot say enough good things about Ms. Biel. I hope she continues getting great roles for years to come. Stephen McHattie also shines as the lieutenant investigating the missing children. This guy has such amazing acting chops. He puts almost any other actor to shame. I thought he was great as Grant Mazzy in Pontypool and Hollis Mason in Watchmen, but here is another wonderful performance here. He has an interrogation scene that is almost perfect in its execution. I basically wish he would play every character in every movie ever. He's just absolutely a joy to watch act. I should also mention Jodelle Ferland, who seems to have found a niche in "horror" movies with Silent Hill, The Cabin in the Woods, and now this one. Her acting isn't anything to be blown away with here. She has very few lines despite being one of the most featured members of the cast. But her acting is very competent, and for a young actress- well, I have to believe she's the best of her age group by far.

So, I'm not going to say much more. I really enjoyed this movie and would suggest it to anybody who likes movies in general. While it's not precisely a horror movie, I am going to bill it as such here. It's marketed as one and does have some elements of a horror film, particularly in the earlier parts of the film. It's a movie that also really requires multiple viewings to see the whole picture. I seriously cannot recommend this movie enough. With a great plot and some wonderful acting, makeup (Oh, I didn't say it, but the makeup effects are amazing here.), and messages I think this is easily one of the best films I've seen this year.

Movie Appraisal: The Ring (2002)

The Ring is probably the best film remake I have ever seen. Most remakes in my opinion are terrible. This one is actually quite good. I was going to review Ringu, the original Japanese movie, but I had absolutely no time to watch it and will review that one at a later date. I've seen The Ring a ton of times and found it to be a pretty easy movie to review for my last review of October (even though technically I'm doing this review a week after Halloween. This is what happens when one has a busy schedule of classes and puts all of this on his plate as well.).

Anyway, this is one of my favorite non-psychological horror films that still is very much a horror film. I love the imagery in this film. I like it better than even most psychological horror films. The haunted videotape is awesome unto itself and actually becomes quite hard to watch since you know what it is and what it supposedly does to the viewer. The film grabs you and never lets you go, and I can't usually say that about most recent, very mainstream films. The story is fantastic. The acting, with Naomi Watts leading it, is fantastic and believable. There are genuinely very creepy moments that will leave you with nightmares for years to come. I've always liked the fact that it rains throughout the entire movie. The fog is awesome as well. And the little girl, Samara coming out of the television screen is one of the most terrifying things I have ever seen in my entire life in a film.

Seriously, if you haven't seen this film, see it. It's absolutely worth it. If you have seen it, watch it again. It's a great film that should be watched as often as possible for its setting, tone, plot, acting, awesomeness, terror, et cetera. It makes most films seem awkward and annoying in comparison.

I love the pacing of this film. I have to say that. I feel that that is something that isn't said often enough about films, but pacing is a legitimate art-form in some ways, and here is one of the best examples of great pacing that I know of. Most horror films kind of need good pacing, but this one is just fantastic. It could be that the film is a bit of a mystery plot that revolves around Naomi Watts' character, Rachel, trying to find out about this videotape. I deem this film of the mystery-horror genre. I know most people call this psychological horror, but those people are stupid and should be ignored. What I've mostly reviewed in movies over these last thirty-one days has been psychological horror. This movie is entirely in the real world. It has no epic dream sequences or anything. This is one of the fines examples of mystery-horror, but not an example at all of psychological horror. Hell, Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, is a very definite psychological horror film. This one is not, but that doesn't make it bad at all.

Anyway, this is an awesome film. The visuals are some of the best you'll ever see. The acting is fantastic, the plot is different and pretty awesome, and everybody should see this movie at least once in their lives.