Dolls

"Dolls" (1987, Stuart Gordon, Empire Pictures) is a killer doll movie.


Little Judy Bower (Carrie Lorraine) is an unlucky tyke. Her parents are divorced and she's stuck on holiday with her selfish father, David (Ian Patrick Williams), and his new wife, Rosemary (Carolyn Purdy Gordon) - the epitome of wicked stepmother and lover of hair wraps.


After their trip is cut short due to a thunderstorm, the family seek shelter in a nearby house; that of elderly puppet-maker, Gabriel Hartwicke (Guy Rolfe) and his rather dotty wife, Hilary (Hilary Mason). They are later joined by some other stranded strangers; punk girls and thieves, Isabel (Bunty Bailey) and Enid (Cassie Stuart), and the child-at-heart schmo the girls have marked as their next robbery victim, Ralph (Steven Lee). The old couple are very accommodating, giving everyone a room each for the night and offering them supper and wine. Gabriel also gifts the young Judy a Mr Punch doll upon finding out that Rosemary threw her favourite teddy bear into the woods!


But as the night wears on the dolls and puppets placed around the large house seem to move, strange voices can be heard coming from behind locked doors, people appear to go missing and suspicious bloodstains begin to appear. Are the friendly Hartwicke's up to something devious? Will Judy escape from her awful father and stepmother? What's the deal with Mr Punch? All is revealed in this fun, cheesy caper.


Despite falling into the low-budget category, "Dolls" enjoys some effects that still look good today. The doll face effects can vary in quality between props, but are pretty good overall. There's also a variety of different little doll-monsters to enjoy and the scenes with them in are fun in a way similar to the "Puppet Master" series. There's also the added layer of watching the dolls' creation which was pretty fun.


Rolfe and Mason provide some likeable villains with an effective creep-factor, both Williams and Gordon also bring some unlikeable fodder to the tale and Bailey and Stuart provide further villains with more annoying accents. Carrie Lorraine does great work as the little leading lady and pushes the plot on with her childish curiosity and bravery.


There's a lesson in there about being a nice person, being a good parent and also about watching out for vengeful dolls. The film delivers this in a gleefully schlocky b-movie way before sending us on our way as yet another family of unhappy individuals lands themselves on the doorstep of Hartwicke's dollhouse....

[Image: Empire Pictures]

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Freaks (2019)

"Freaks" (2019, Adam Stein, Zack Lipovsky, Amazing Incorporated, Wise Daughter Films, My Way Productions, Storyboard Capital Group) is a science fiction thriller.

Chloe (Lexy Kolker) is a seven year old girl living with her father, Henry (Emile Hirsch), in an abandoned house. Henry appears quite disturbed and will not allow Chloe outside of the house or to even look out of the windows. However, Mr. Snowcone (Bruce Dern), the local ice cream man, is on a mission to get Chloe out into the world for his own reasons...

At first I thought I'd found my way onto yet another slow burning dud, but after the initial confusing build up, the film starts to really pick up and takes us in several new directions I hadn't been expecting.

Lexy Kolker is a fantastic little lead actress and manages to conquer some pretty tough looking scenes with an effortless ease and reality. We're completely with her the whole way through, even when we occasionally don't know what's going on. Chloe is faced with some dark situations, and some scenes cover some quite violent or morally questionable themes. It's dark, scary and quite fascinating.

Emile Hirsch is also great in the part as the slightly unhinged father. From first introduction until the final reveal we're never quite sure what his deal is and how much of it is fabricated.

I like Bruce Dern in general, but he's excellent in this part treading the line between friendly and scary with deft ease and a hint of relish. As the audience learn more about what's really going on we find ourselves understanding his character more, even if we don't like his methods.

Overall, I found the film enjoyable. I appreciate that the build up was kept consciously vague to allow the reveal to be more effective, and in I'm glad I didn't give up on it when I wasn't sure if it was going anywhere. Some of the scenes are really engaging, especially in Chloe's cupboard, but there are a few parts of the film that felt a little 'syfy TV special' and didn't quite gel as well into the overall body. On the whole, however, I would definitely watch this film again.

[Amazing Incorporated, et al]

Hani

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers

"Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers" (1988, Dwight H. Little, Trancas International) is the fourth instalment in the Halloween franchise and a direct sequel to Halloween 2.

Michael Myers (George P. Wilbur, Tom Morga & Erik Preston) wakes from a coma and discovers that his sister Laurie has been reported dead, but had a daughter called Jamie (Danielle Harris) who is living in Haddonfield with a foster family. He makes a murderous bee-line towards Haddonfield to find her, whilst being tailed by Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence).

The film is a pretty by-the-book slasher movie and pales, of course, in comparison to the original. Donald Pleasence, as ever, manages to deliver a dedicated performance, and Danielle Harris gives a strong performance as the young Jamie, however overall Michael is just slashing over familiar ground and it lacks the tension of its predecessors. Despite that, it remains an entertaining film and is still worth visiting for some old fashioned slasher movie nonsense.

[Image: Trancas International]

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Hereditary

"Hereditary" (2018, Ari Aster, PalmStar Media, Finch Entertainment, Windy Hill Pictures) is a supernatural horror centred around a very unusual family.


When her mother, Ellen, dies, artist Annie (Toni Collette), feels guilty that she is not sad. Her mother had been a very difficult person to love, after all. Her husband, Steve (Gabriel Byrne), is supportive and her teenaged son, Peter (Alex Wolff), is fairly indifferent. But her young daughter, Charlie (Milly Shapiro), who was closest to her grandmother, is inconsolable.


Annie and her family are a strange bunch at the best of times, but little Charlie is an unusual child with a somewhat morose interest in death. Throughout the film we begin to learn or catch glimpses of just how strange the family's lives have been. When tragedy strikes the family again they begin to understand that there is something darker at play here, and it may all stem from Ellen...


A really enthralling film that kept me captivated throughout. Although the plot doesn't deliver constant pulse-pounding terror, the characters are just odd enough and the plot just emotional enough to keep you on the edge of your seat. I left the cinema with a haunted sense of melancholy that didn't shift for a few days. I felt essentially haunted by this film! It's a feeling I don't get often, but it's definitely something I'd consider to be a good sign.


Annie is a study in dysfunctionality, perfectly and movingly performed by Collette who keeps the tension and emotion dialled up to 11 with a believable and oddly sympathetic effect despite some of the character's actions.


Shaprio gives a very memorable and haunting performance as the disturbing young Charlie, and Wolff really brings the events affecting Peter to a level that surpasses typical horror movie levels. Byrne's father character is against all odds, trying to keep the family going. The film is superiorly acted on all counts.


Although the final scenes may seem to go to sudden and extreme lengths in quick succession, as a 70s horror fan, I felt that it really paid an excellent but modernised homage to the genre.


Definitely worth catching in the cinema, it may not terrify you, but it will certainly stay with you for a while...

[Image: PalmStar Media, et al]

Hani

What ever happened to Baby Jane?

"What ever happened to Baby Jane?" (1962, Robert Aldrich, Seven Arts Productions, Warner Bros. Pictures) is a psychological horror film about two ageing actress sisters. The film is based on a 1960 novel of the same name by Henry Farrell and stars the famously feuding Bette Davis and Joan Crawford.

To be honest my sudden compulsion to re-watch this famous flick was inspired by the first part of the episodic docudrama "Feud: Bette and Joan" (2017) starring Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange, which is very entertaining and definitely worth watching!

"Baby" Jane Hudson (Bette Davis) is an ex-child star who, after casting a shadow over her sister's childhood due to her booming stage career, later found that her own adult acting career was then overshadowed by her elder sister, Blanche (Joan Crawford). Having turned to drink to drown her sorrows, Jane is suspected to have caused the car accident which paralysed Blanche.

Years later, it is evident that Jane's mental state is not good, and as sole carer for Blanche she has the power to hold her captive, away from the world. All attempts from outsiders to intervene are halted by an angry and devious Jane and eventually drive her to becoming more and more erratic and dangerous in her attempts to live out her delusional plan of becoming America's sweetheart once again.

A fascinating study on the feelings that lost popularity and fame can have, and on the breakdown in the mind of someone who cannot move on with their lives. Jane's father drove her to stardom, but didn't provide her with any sense of longevity; her career would always end when she grew older. Her jealousy of Blanche is the exact reflection of Blanche's own feelings of jealousy and resentment which she had as the 'unfamous' child.

Both sisters are fabulously portrayed with relish by Davis and Crawford, helped along by their own off-screen dislike for one another. Jane's spiralling mental state and heart-breaking delusion are almost difficult to watch. A particularly chilling scene where she is singing in the mirror and then catches a glimpse of her aged face is really aweing. Blanche's quiet desperation and helplessness builds the sense of dread to match the madness of her sister.

The film enjoys a tense and exciting ending with some revelations and last pieces of both character puzzles falling into place. A genuine classic that will continue to be discovered by new audiences as time goes on.

[Image: Warner Bros. Pictures]

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