Monday 24 September 2018

Imitation Girl

"Imitation Girl" (2017, Natasha Kermani, Illium Pictures, Cup of Joe Film, Epic Pictures) is a sci-fi drama about a shape shifting alien.

A quick learning alien life form crashes to earth and assumes the form of a porn star cover girl called Juliana (Lauren Ashley Carter) from a discarded magazine. The creature then proceeds to investigate her new world where she finds help in the form of Saghi (Neimah Djourabchi) and his sister, Kahar (Sanam Erfani).

Concurrently, we follow the real Juliana who keeps catching glimpses of the alien using her face in the mirror...

"Imitation Girl" is a very character-driven piece. Carter gives an amazing performance as both the curious alien creature and her human counterpart. The film gives us a study on modern life and the common question "who am I, really?". Juliana is discontented with her life and her career and is seeking a way to achieve more. She seems to be constantly at odds with herself as to whether she considers her achievements to date to render her life successful. She attempts to recapture old talents and new, exciting experiences but just can't shake the impacts and habits of her life, job and character flaws. She's in a rut and she can't find her way out. It's a struggle that I'm sure a lot of people relate to on at least some level. The creature wearing her skin is asking herself the same question as she goes through various experiences and builds a relationship with Saghi. In a somewhat poignant manner, it is the alien who gets the most out of the human experience; she finds love, learns to speak Persian and embraces what her time on earth has to offer her.

The sci-fi aspects of the film are really secondary to the exploration of identity and are used to drive the plot forward. However, the effects are good and have a serene quality that fits extremely well with the narrative. The film is very thoughtful, slow burning and beautiful. If you're looking for a more energetic alien story this is probably not for you, but if you're looking for a contemplative, art house piece this could tick a lot of your boxes and is definitely worthy of your time. Currently available on Amazon Prime!

[Image: Illium Pictures, et al]
Hani

Sunday 23 September 2018

Hell House LLC 2

"Hell House LLC 2: The Abaddon Hotel" (2018, Stephen Cognetti, Cognetti Films) is the sequel to 2016's found footage jump-fest, "Hell House LLC".

I personally really enjoyed the original film and you can find my thoughts on it here.

Following on from the events of the first film which covered a documentary team investigating the supposed technical issues which caused tragedy at the opening night of popular Halloween Haunt, Hell House, at the Abaddon hotel in 2009, the second film focuses on the public's continued curiosity of the cause of the tragedy.

Having reached some level of infamy after the documentary was released, Mitchell (Vasile Flutur) ventures back into the Abaddon Hotel after investigative journalist, Jessica Fox (Jillian Geurts), and her team receive an anonymous tip off of breakthrough evidence within the abandoned building. Despite Mitchell's misgivings they head back inside and discover some more of the truth behind the hotel's dark presence.

The familiar surroundings and creation of continuity are very effective and the film manages to continue the story in a believable way, demonstrating that the documentary inspired several wannabe ghost hunters to venture into the hotel with their camera phones and meet some unfortunate circumstances.

A lot of the jump scares are familiar, too, but this isn't to the detriment of the film and actually really pleased me as a viewer. The hotel doesn't change the rules for the sequel, it just reveals more of its nature to the camera. There are one or two elements where we are shown perhaps too much compared to the first film where a lot of the scares were in the subtlety of the horror, but on the whole the sequel delivers a lot of the same level of creep that the first did.

In the pattern of most sequels, however, the film does not quite meet the quality of the original and the characters and actors do not quite convey the same natural relationships and repartee that the original cast did. Things do sometimes feel a little more obviously acted. Although some of these scenes took me out of the story momentarily, the action within the hotel would quickly draw me back in.

The film delivers many more twists than the first and some of the revelations are delivered at a fast pace. A good few of these are succinct and creative, but the volume of them did lose some of the ingenuity and simplicity of the original plot. The story flow of the sequel is also less linear than the original and demands a little more effort from the viewer to keep things in place.

All in all, "Hell House LLC: The Abaddon Hotel" delivers an effective sequel that continues the story from the first film and sets up a comfortable starting place for more in the series. Although it didn't feel as immersive as the original, I certainly enjoyed it and look forward to a third.

[Image: Cognetti Films]

Saturday 22 September 2018

Nightmare Castle

"Nightmare Castle" (1965, Mario Caiano, Cinematografica Emmeci) is a fun black and white Italian horror riddled with well trodden tropes and perfect for scratching a gothic horror itch. It's maybe not the best Italian horror of the time, but it's certainly worth viewing and will appeal to many fans of the genre.

Dr. Stephen Arrowsmith (Paul Meuller) is a mad scientist living in the grand ancestral castle home of his gorgeous and gothic wife, Muriel (Barbara Steele). Muriel, however, is having a steamy affair with their gardener, David. Upon catching the pair mid-embrace in the greenhouse, Stephen flies into a rage and beats the gardener before chaining both of them up and torturing them to death.

Using mad science (it's very different from normal science), Stephen then uses the blood of his victims to give his elderly servant, Solange, youth, turning her into the beautiful Helga Liné. Stephen and Solange then begin a relationship of their own, while the souls of Muriel and David are trapped in the castle by the their disembodied hearts skewered within an urn in the main hall.

To his dismay, however, Stephen learns that he was not Muriel's heir and that the castle has passed to her stepsister Jenny (also Barbara Steele) who currently resides in a mental institution. Seeing an opportunity, Stephen quickly marries the poor girl and drags her to the castle to live with him and Solange while he continues both his experiments and the affair with Solange.

Jenny begins to feel terrified, claiming to hear the spirits in the castle and beginning to take on the characteristics of her dear departed half sister. Finding Jenny's behaviour uncomfortable, and keen to declare her insane (but still married) so he can have his cake and eat it, Stephen calls for Jenny's doctor, Dr. Derek Joyce (Marino Masé) to the castle to treat her. However, the Dr. begins to suspect that there are supernatural forces at work and accidentally releases the vengeful spirits of the dead lovers to wreak havoc on those who wronged them!

Critics of the time considered this film to be too tropey. They threw around words like 'pedestrian' and 'obvious'. And while I can appreciate that the film certainly contains a lot of characteristics prevalent in many horrors from that period, it does so with a charm and clarity that many other films were devoid of. The drama between the characters is well achieved, and the strange and mostly undeveloped sub-plot of rejuvenating youth aside, the plot moves on at a good pace.

Barbara Steele gives us two very distinct characters with the sultry vixen Muriel being the antithesis of her nervous and pure stepsister, Jenny. We are also treated to a period clothing undressing scene that would put many a modern burlesque performer to shame.

The film also boasts some practical effects that still stand well to the modern viewer and a convincing entrance for our ghostly characters upon their release from the urn. While it's unlikely to have you shaking in your boots, it certainly has an ethereal and atmospheric charm that is exactly what I'm looking for in a gothic horror.

If you're looking for a Halloween warm-up film available to stream on Amazon you could do a lot worse than a visit to this drama-filled stately home set in Rome.

[Image: Cinematografica Emmeci]

Hani

Sunday 9 September 2018

Summer of '84

"Summer of '84" (2018, François Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell, Brightlight Pictures, Gunpowder & Sky) is an homage to the '80s.

Following on from the nostalgia laden genius of "Stranger Things", "Summer of '84" brings in elements of many of the 80s' genre greats including: "The Goonies", "The Monster Squad", "Fright Night", "Stand By Me" and "The 'Burbs". And while it doesn't quite match up to Stranger Things' fine crafted blend of nostalgia and pacing, it was far from a bad film.

We meet teenager, Davey Armstrong (Graham Verchere), and his friends, Dale "Woody" Woodworth (Caleb Emery), Tommy "Eats" Eaton (Judah Lewis) and Curtis Farraday (Cory Gruter-Andrew). They decide to follow their own investigation into a local kidnapping spree and their suspicions lead them to Davey's neighbour; police officer Wayne Mackey (Rich Sommer).

The boys begin hunting for evidence that the jovial Mackey is actually harbouring a deep, dark secret. But they'll face challenges on the way... and possibly some serious repercussions.

A fun film that suffers from a few pacing issues but enjoys some serious jolts, a gripping ending and a believable recreation of the era. The characters have enough quirks and backstory to keep them feeling rounded, and the plot keeps a good sense of mystery where one minute we think the lads are right on track and the next we think they may be making a huge mistake.

Pleasant viewing with a bit of darkness around the edges.

[Image: Gunpowder & Sky, et al]

Hani 

Saturday 8 September 2018

Down a Dark Hall

"Down a Dark Hall" (2018, Rodrigo Cortés, Fickle Fish Films, Nostromo Pictures, Temple Hill Entertainment) is thriller-horror based on a teen novel by the same name.

Kit (AnnaSophia Robb) is a difficult teenager who gets in trouble often and does not get on with her parents. So they enrol her in a boarding school called Blackwood for 'gifted' students run by headmistress, Madame Duret (Uma Thurman). Kit and the other teens begin to feel that there is more to the winding halls of the school and soon discover that Blackwood Manor holds some secrets within its walls.

The film is very stylish with a lot of beautiful gothic scenes and some nice creep factor. The characters are fairly three-dimensional and enjoy a nice mix of flaws and charm. And, while it certainly has a teen-horror vibe and the scares are relatively limited, it delivers an entertaining package of weirdness.

The plot does get a little convoluted, however, overall I enjoyed this movie for its entertainment value. And that's what it's all about.

[Image: Fickle Fish Films, et al]
Hani

Sunday 2 September 2018

Sleepwalkers

"Sleepwalkers" (1992, Mick Garris, Columbia Pictures) is a film based on a short story by Stephen King.

Charles (Brian Krause) and his mother, Mary (Alice Krige), are the last surviving creatures of a clan of shapeshifting energy vampires called Sleepwalkers. They are also terrified of cats. As well as being mother and son, the couple are, well, an incestuous couple. *shudder*

Charles meets Tanya (Mädchen Amick) at school and begins a romantic relationship with her in an attempt to feed from her life energy to keep himself and his mother alive. Unfortunately for Charles, things do not go to plan. Especially when a local police deputy sheriff (Dan Martin) and Clovis, the police cat, catch up on the would-be feast.

The film clumsily straddles the genres of campy horror comedy and a more serious vampire movie. It begins somewhat strongly but tapers off into a bit of a farce around the halfway mark. Although, that's not to say that it is not enjoyable; it is. It's just perhaps more enjoyable for more humorous reasons than initially intended.

Mary plays out as the most interesting character with her flimsy nightwear and penchant for setting bear traps in which to snare the neighbourhood felines who have taken to sitting on her lawn. And Charles is a somewhat sympathetic character up until he begins his games of cat and mouse (pun intended) with both Tanya and with the deputy sheriff.

The film enjoys some fun, physical effects and an entertaining ability of the Sleepwalkers to make themselves invisible, into cat creatures or to add a glamour to any given object.

A sincere yet cheesy piece that also enjoys a short cameo from both Mr. King and Mark Hamill as well as a small but memorable role for Ron Perlman.

Come for the intriguing premise, but stay for the batshit crazy action. Killer corn on the cob!

[Image: Columbia Pictures]
Hani