Filmsy - Movie Reviews Blog

Magic (1978) – Review

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Magic 1978

Those of you who were disappointed in this year’s most recent killer-ventriloquist-dummy-horror movie, “Dead Silence”, might be interested in checking out “Magic” starring Anthony Hopkins which was recently unearthed on DVD. Much more of a psychological thriller ala “Psycho” or “Rosemary’s Baby” and less of a gratuitous “killer toy” movie like “Child’s Play” or “Dolls”, “Magic” actually tells a very unnerving and engaging love story with a very solid cast you wouldn’t expect to see in a movie such as this.

Corky Withers (Anthony Hopkins) is a ventriloquist who’s moving up in the world of show business thanks to his manager, Ben Greene (Burgess Meredith). However, Corky is a bit too attached to his loud and crass dummy, Fats (voiced by Hopkins), and when he is required to take a psychological exam before taking a television contract, panics and flees to his old home town. He takes up residence at a lakeshore motel run by his old high school crush, Peggy (Ann-Margret), and the two immediately hit things off. However, Fats’ personality begins to dominate Corky’s and he views Peggy as competition. Corky undergoes even greater psychological stress when Peggy’s violent husband begins threatening him and Ben Greene tracks him down, determined to get to the bottom of his mental disorder. Corky eventually snaps from the stress and under Fats’ guidance, deals with his problems one after another.

For a movie that typically gets relegated to the silly horror movie bins alongside “Rock and Roll Nightmare” and “Troll 2”, “Magic” has an incredible cast. You’ve of course got the likes of Anthony Hopkins in the lead role, back before he really hit it big. But you’ve also got then-bombshell Ann-Margret and the ever-talented Burgess Meredith filling out the ranks. The all-star cast alone should tell you that this is more than some goofy movie about a killer ventriloquist dummy.

“Magic” is a psychological thriller at its core. Fats is never actually “alive” in the sense that his dummy-body isn’t animate; he exists only within Corky’s delusional mind. It’s rather similar to an episode of The Twilight Zone (“The Dummy”) in a few ways, so if you recall that popular episode then you might have an idea of how this movie was handled. While Fats is never actually alive, Hopkins delivers such a strong performance you actually find yourself forgetting he isn’t at times. Despite being an inanimate doll, Fats truly steals the show in this film. It’s amazing how frightening he can be. He never actually moves on his own (save for one scene where the dummy operator screwed up), yet he becomes such an entirely separate character from Corky, that you discover yourself finding Fats scary and Corky not, despite them being the same person.

“Magic” provides some very tense and memorable sequences. My favorite is the scene where Burgess Meredith tells Hopkins to shut Fats up for five minutes. The movie then moves along in real time as Hopkins nervously tries to keep Fats quiet. A very uncomfortable sequence done extremely well, to Oscar-winning Director Richard Attenborough’s credit.

If you’re in the mood for a wacky horror flick about killer ventriloquist dummies then you’re not going to find it here. However, if you’re in the mood for an extremely well-crafted and well-acted psychological horror film then you’ve come to the right place. “Magic” really delivers and belongs on every cinema fan’s shelf.

Grade: B+

Bug (2007) – Review

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Bug 2007

I honestly haven’t seen a lot of William Friedkin’s movies. As a matter of fact, outside of “the Exorcist”, I don’t think I’ve seen any of his other movies. Despite that, fond memories of “the Exorcist” were enough to get me anticipated for this flick, even if said exorcism movie was made thirty years ago. To my surprise, Friedkin has lost little of his touch in the three decades since his biggest success. “Bug” is a very unnerving, uncomfortable and unsettling film that’ll make you feel itchy all over.

Agnes (Ashley Judd) is a troubled woman living out of a motel in the Midwest. Her friend introduces her to a strange but intriguing man named Peter (Michael Shannon) and she invites him to stay with her. She soon discovers that Peter isn’t alone. He has brought with himself a terrible swarm of aphid-like bugs that nest in your skin and eat your flesh. However, the longer she spends with Peter the more both of them mentally unwind, as the pair begins to suspect they are at the epicenter of a government conspiracy.

“Bug” is very much a psychological thriller/horror film that plays with the audience’s heads. You never see the bugs, and as the film progresses, you start to doubt they even exist. Yet whether the bugs are present or not, Friedkin crafts an atmosphere so uncomfortable you can’t help but feel your skin crawl.

I’m going to assume most everyone reading this has seen “the Exorcist”. If you haven’t then there must be something wrong with you. Well, “Bug” is set up very much the same way as “the Exorcist”. It takes a while to get going. About an hour, in fact. Yet, unlike some movies (“Death Proof”), the focus is never lost and this doesn’t feel like wasted time. The characters are introduced, developed and fleshed out, yet not at the expense of the film’s true plot. The tension builds steadily and once the real conflict gets underway everything begins to move at a hectic pace. It all eventually comes to a head and, much like “the Exorcist”, ends abruptly yet satisfyingly.

One thing I want to praise Friedkin on is the use of editing. Conversations happen in “real time” with as few cuts as possible, meaning the actors are delivering these very long sequences of complex dialogue without getting a breather. And to the cast’s credit, they do it very well. It doesn’t seem so impressive at first, as many of the discussions are rather mundane or run of the mill, but once Peter and Agnes begin to lose their minds and go off on extensive and psychotic rants for what feels like an eternity, you’ll start to squirm in your seat. And the things they say are so ludicrous and mind-blowing you’ll have a stern “what the” expression frozen on your face for at least an hour.

As far as the whole “are the bugs real or not” conflict is concerned, it isn’t nearly as cut and dry as you’d think. Agnes and Peter are nuts, there’s no two ways about that, yet there are several mysterious, unexplained and creepy things going on around them, outside their hallucinations, which seem to almost validate some of their paranoia. The movie gives you no precise answers either, leaving you to come to your own conclusions.

“Bug” feels like a movie that could’ve been made thirty years ago. It’s starkly different than most of the horror thrillers released in mainstream theaters these days, with their multi-million dollar budgets and glossy sheens. While movies like “Grindhouse” and “House of 1000 Corpses” try to homage or parody horror films from the 70’s, “Bug” feels like it stepped directly out of that decade. It’s certain to be overlooked, but I would easily recommend it to any serious horror fan looking for something different, but more importantly, something good.

Grade: B

Disturbia – Review

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Disturbia

A teeny-bopper re-imagining of Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window” starring a hip young cast of relevant trendsetters? Just what I’ve always wanted! I hope Director/Dance Lieutenant Boom Shaka Laka D.J. Caruso follows up this effort with a remake of “Vertigo” starring Justin Timberlake, or perhaps yet another remake of “Psycho”, but this time headlining Ashley Simpson!

Okay, okay, I’ve had my fun. Truthfully, “Disturbia” wasn’t nearly as bad as all that. While the “teeny-bopper re-imagining of Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Rear Window’” is entirely honest, “Disturbia” is surprisingly watchable for what it is.

After losing his dad in a car accident, teenage boy Kale (Shia LaBeouf) develops anger issues which eventually lead him to three months of house arrest. If he attempts to leave his front lawn a sensor will trip and police will arrive to kick the mortal Hell out of him. To pass the time, Kale and his Studio Mandated Ethnic Friend (Aaron Yoo) take to voyeurism. While spying on his new neighbor, Ashley (Sarah Roemer), Kale is spotted. Like most teenage girls, Ashley is turned on by the thought of a creepy young man watching her with binoculars from across the street and the two immediately fall in love. But there is something disturbing going on in suburbia (get it!?), namely a spooky old man named Mr. Turner (David Morse) whom the trio of teenage peeping toms spy murdering someone. Well, they think they saw him murdering someone. It was kinda hard to tell, but c’mon, the guy mows his lawn twice a day, he’s got to be a serial killer. So the kids investigate this local terror, stuff gets scary and people die. Or do they? Aha, see how that works? That’s the hook! Genius.

I know, I know, you’ve seen it all before in “Rear Window”, its ill-conceived remake starring Superman and the jillions of parodies made over the decades. So, what does “Disturbia” have to offer the formula in order to make this version necessary? Not much, really.

The movie tries to be, like “Rear Window”, a mystery suspense thriller leaving the audience to wonder whether Mr. Turner is really a maniac or not. Unfortunately, the marketing campaign for the film thought that would be too boring and is thus considerably less ambiguous about the villain’s mental health, showing the audience some key scenes that pretty much spoil all of the “mystery”. So, that makes this a “mystery suspense thriller” with the “mystery” ruined and the “suspense” considerably diluted. We’re not getting off to a good start, here.

Alright, so those things aside, is it any good? Well, it’s not awful. They take the “Rear Window” formula and spice it up with some modern technology which does add to the “thriller” aspect. Portable video cameras and cell-phones provide a good bit of suspense, even with the mystery aspect wasted. The acting isn’t half bad. Shia LaBeouf plays the angsty youth quite well and David Morse hardly skips a beat as the creepy neighbor. I mean, they’re good, but not really impressive. They just play the roles well-enough to keep the audience from cringing or rolling their eyes or dropping out of the experience. Sarah Roemer is the weaker link of the cast. It seems MC Caruso McDancealot was going more for looks than acting prowess when he selected her.

What it all boils down to is that “Disturbia” is a “wait until HBO” flick, or a “bored out of my skull” rental at the very best. It’s not terrible, but it’s just not special.

Grade: C

The Reaping – Review

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the reaping

Although the trailers came across as a bit iffy, I felt that the concept of “the Reaping” showed a lot of promise. I didn’t go into the film with all sorts of false hopes and high expectations, but I did give it the benefit of the doubt; something I can’t say many other people in my city did, considering the relatively empty theater I saw it in. Now that I’ve seen the flick, I have to confess, “the Reaping” is pretty mediocre.

Katherine Winter (Hilary Swank) is a former minister who turned her back on God after the death of her family and now devotes her life to traveling the world and proving reported miracles as false (not petty at all). She is approached by Doug (David Morrissey) of the backwater Louisiana town of Haven who has a startling claim: the swamp in Haven has turned completely to blood. Accompanied by her partner, Ben (Idris Elba), Katherine arrives at Haven only to encounter a series of biblical plagues, each with completely unexplainable origins. At the epicenter of the plagues is a little girl (AnnaSophia Robb) who may or may not be the Anti-Christ.

I found the idea behind “the Reaping” to be very intriguing: the ten biblical plagues tormenting a small town in the Bible Belt. Unfortunately, what could have been a fascinating story turned into just another generic Hollywood horror flick, filled with mundane jump-scares, over-the-top special effects and needless explosions. Sometimes less is more, ya know. “The Reaping” left me wishing it had been made in the 70’s or early 80’s where a lack of budget and special effects might have left it to rely more on a strong script exploring the mystery behind the bizarre plagues rather than jillions of CGI locusts and a ridiculously effects-heavy ending. One day I’ll finish that time machine and make my dream a reality. One day…

There are some upsides to this film, though. The cast is quite strong and they all play their parts convincingly. The characters can be a bit “blech” thanks to moments of convenient and awkward exposition, but the actors do the best with what they have. While I’m not normally a fan of child actors and actresses, AnnaSophia Robb has been impressing me lately with movies such as “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “the Bridge to Terabithia”. She looks to have a very bright future ahead of her. In regards to “the Reaping”, while it’s not that great of a movie, she plays the part of the creepy little girl rather well.

There just isn’t much for me to say about “the Reaping” because it just isn’t much of a movie. It takes a potentially interesting concept and turns it into a string of clichés. You’re better off seeing “Grindhouse” this weekend and waiting for “the Reaping” to hit cable. You’re really not missing anything.

Grade: C-

Grindhouse – Review

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Grindhouse

Robert Rodriguez’s and Quentin Tarantino’s “Grindhouse” harkens back to the days of 70’s snuff films and the theaters which showed them. I know, I know, “Quentin Tarantino doing a retro 1970’s film? NO WAY!!” Yeah, it may be Tarantino’s “thing”, but at least he’s good at it. Usually. Personally, I love snuff films and obscure horror flicks of the 70’s, like “Cannibal Holocaust”, “Last House on the Left”, “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and so on. So of course I got a kick out of this film.

“Grindhouse” goes out of its way to replicate the authenticity of the underground snuff theaters of the era, going so far as to include fake trailers for hilariously awful/awesome horror films, directed by current horror icons like Rob Zombie and Eli Roth. You’ve also got advertisements for “local” restaurants and vintage “now our feature presentation/coming attractions” bumpers. Boosting the “retro” look of the films themselves are the intentional use of grain, flickering, skipping and humorously placed “sorry, reel missing” cards. Trust me, it’s great.

When the trailers and television spots refer to “Grindhouse” as a double feature, they aren’t kidding. These aren’t two short films run back-to-back, these are two full-length films run back-to-back. So eat something before you head out, because there’s no intermission.

The first film, “Planet Terror”, is the big snuff piece, packing in as much gratuitous sex and violence as an R-rating will allow. It would seem that a rogue military unit lead by Lt. Muldoon (Bruce Willis) have botched an attempt to purchase a deadly mutagenic nerve gas and accidentally unleashed it upon a small Texas town. The town begins to swarm with flesh-eating mutant zombies, which is never a good sign. An enigmatic sharp-shooter named Wray (Freddy Rodriguez) bands together with peg-legged go-go dancer Cherry Darling (Rose McGowen), grizzled sheriff Hague (Michael Biehn) and his dopey deputy Tolo (Tom Savini) to get to the root of the problem and stop the zombies at their source. Along the way, Wray crafts Cherry a machine gun/missile launcher leg and things get crazy (er).

I felt Robert Rodriguez’s “Planet Terror” was the stronger of the two films, or at least the most entertaining. It’ll be the one you leave the theater talking about, at any rate. It’s completely over-the-top in every conceivable way and absolutely unforgiving. You’d better have a strong stomach, otherwise you won’t make it very far. “Planet Terror” seems like more of a parody movie than an homage, with lots of textbook characters that play their clichéd roles more for laughs than anything else. So when this movie’s bad, it’s usually on purpose. While it can get a bit too silly for its own good, it’s still a blast. The finale, where Cherry goes apes*** with her new leg, is an absolute blast.

The second segment, “Deathproof” (directed by Tarantino), takes itself far more seriously and is considerably more low-key. So low-key, in fact, you can take a twenty minute-long bathroom break and not miss a freakin’ thing.

Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russel) likes to get his kicks by picking on helpless women out on the open road in his supped-up hotrod. It’s easy for him, considering his car is a former stunt vehicle and therefore “deathproof”. Mike successfully murders woman after woman…until he targets the wrong trio of ladies (Rosario Dawson, Zoe Bell, Tracie Thoms). Not to be f***ed with, these ladies turn the tables on Mike and take him on the ride of his life.

Tarantino took a rather interesting approach with this film, one that will likely bore many to tears. “Deathproof” can be broken up into two halves and in both segments, Tarantino lets the audience get to know the victims very intimately. This can get very, very boring. The first half is particularly irritating, as the pay-off after the extensive bar sequence is very minimal. The second half is even more torturous, as we have to get to know a whole new set of characters and suffer through a barrage of meaningless “girl talk” again. However, the second half rewards the audience for their patience with a very long and very impressive car chase sequence. Regardless, there’s so much empty space in “Deathproof” that you can safely take a bathroom break for however long you please and not fret over missing anything important.

The fake trailers in-between the two movies are hysterical, leaving me with hopes that they make a sequel and include these concepts. I mean, “Werewolf Women of the SS” starring Nicolas Cage and Bill Moseley? I’ll take eight tickets, please.

“Grindhouse” is a whole lot of fun and a total bargain at that. Two full length films for the price of one? Can’t beat that with a stick. While the second film is a bit weak, the first absolutely makes up for it. I highly recommend seeing this movie since, c’mon, you know everyone’s gonna be talking about it on Monday.

Grade (“Planet Terror”): B+
Grade (“Deathproof”): C