Malignant

 "Maligant" (2021, James Wan, Atomic Monster, Boom Entertainment, Boom! Studios) 

Madi (Annabelle Wallis) experiences a traumatic event. Left reeling from this and convinced that either an intruder or an intrusive force, has gained access to her home, Madi's sister, Sydney (Maddie Hasson), offers to move in and help Madi recover. However, as time goes on, Madi begins to see things - things that she could not possibly know about. Horrible things that are happening in real time, putting her under the suspicion of Officers Shaw (George Young) and Moss (Michole Briana White).

A new style for Wan, the film kicks off feeling like a much older, campier film, before jumping into more familiar territory with spooky shenanigans in a large house. But this film delivers so much more than the above. With a winding, interesting plot that hops from the bizarre to the outrageous and a gifted cast purposefully hamming it up for effect - but not too much. 

The visuals are excellently used and really appeal to me as a fan of 70s and 80s horror films, J-horror films and practical effects.  "Malignant" pays homage to Henenlotter's "Basket Case" in the best possible way. 

There's so much more to this film, but I don't want to give away too much. My advice is to go in knowing as little as possible.

[Image: Boom Entertainment, et al]

Hani

Saint Maud

"Saint Maud" (2019, Rose Glass, Escape Plan Productions, Film4 Productions,  British Film Institute).

We meet Katie (Morphydd Clark); covered in blood, sitting on the floor. She is a nurse. On a gurney beside her lies a deceased patient. Katie is distraught, having failed to save them. 

Some time later we meet Katie again, but she has found God and reinvented herself. Now known as Maud, she takes a position as a private, live-in palliative care nurse to a wealthy dancer and choreographer called Amanda (Jennifer Ehle). Amanda is terminally ill and has lost the use of her legs, which as a dancer, she finds particularly hard to live with. Amanda is embittered by her situation, but Maud feels like they have a connection. When Amanda tells her of her fear of death, Maud comes to the belief that God has sent her here purposefully to save this woman's soul. Amanda perhaps further cements this belief by jokingly giving Maud a book of William Blake paintings, which are very religious in content, with an inscription penned on the cover calling Maud her 'saviour'. She also feigns a similar experience of ecstasy with Maud during a prayer.

But Amanda is still her own person and, despite Maud's best efforts to keep her "pure", Amanda enjoys too much booze, an endless supply of cigarettes, and the company of her friends. Including a friend called Carol (Lily Frazer), whom Amanda pays for sex. Maud's attempts to scare off Carol eventually lead to her own abrupt dismissal.

Distraught and furious, Maud practices self-flagellation and then gets extremely drunk. After a night of debauchery and a one-night-stand; which brings back vivid visions of her initial trauma, and a visit from an old colleague, Maud has a revelation and decides what it is she must do to fulfil her purpose as Amanda's saviour. 

An interesting film and a great character piece. Maud is a scary concept; so sure that she is in the right. Although she is not a physically imposing person, her power lies in her position as a care giver and her strong conviction. She is also continually dismissed by her peers; seen as an outcast or as harmless. 

Clark is excellent in the role as the obsessed and warped care giver and Ehle portrays the feisty, but broken spirit of Amanda with heartbreaking effect.

Maud's delusions and hallucinations are very subtle and effective and the effects and imagery slowly build up in impact throughout the film's duration. 

The locations and the contrast between Amanda's tragic life in her grand, ornate home and Maud's tragic life in her sparse bedsit, are beautifully stark.

I enjoyed the film, however, it does drag a little in places from a plot perspective. Definitely a slow burning film.

I wondered what the significance of Maud and "God's" communion being in Welsh was,  but a bit of research and an interesting interview piece I read from the director informs me that this was actually due to Glass overhearing Clark speaking Welsh to her family and it sounding good. Which, in honesty, is as good a reason as any and did inspire me to go hunting for answers in the first place!

Worth checking out, but less scary and more unsettling.

Currently available to rent from various VOD platforms, including Sky Store and Prime in the UK.

[Image: Film4 Produtions, et al]

Hani

Leatherface

"Leatherface" (2017, Julien Maury, Alexandre Bustillo, Campbell Grobman Films, Mainline Pictures, Millennium Films, Lionsgate Films) is a prequel to the 1974 original "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and the eighth film in the franchise. It is, however, admittedly only the third film in the franchise that I have personally watched. 

The film follows the character who will become Leatherface, Jed, giving some background on his upbringing and the traumatic events which lead him to become the chainsaw wielding, face-book collecting villain that we all know today.

The film has suffered some negative critical response which is largely undeserved in my view. It manages to exist within the same universe and setting as the 1974 original in a fairly believable way, despite being made more than 40 years later. The characters and action have a familiarity that ties it in to the franchise very well.

The Sawyer family are instantly recognisable as characters and are pitched at correct ages to tie in to the original film. Grandpa Sawyer particularly, in his more mobile 'youth', is a nice nod to the character's future. While the shock factor maintained within the original film is not reclaimed, "Leatherface" pays a strong homage to Hooper's original.

The identity of teenaged Jed is kept as a 'secret', although it's not exactly well hidden. However, he is joined by a host of other characters on, not a slasher style spree, but a Bonny and Clyde style kidnap roadtrip. This change of pace really appealed to me as it further explains the changes in Jed's mental situation from young man with some serious issues to young maniac intent on collecting faces. The film is not a purely Slasher film, managing to blend mental asylum, road trip, body horror and slasher genres into a gory adventure.

The death scenes are gruesome and intense with a bit of necrophilia also thrown in for added ick factor. This film certainly accomplished a few scenes which made me squirm.

An origin story for a much appreciated ('loved' seemed like the wrong word) horror icon that manages to create a worthy plot and character development, with strong performances from the cast. I'm not usually one for reboots, prequels and remakes, but for once this one played out as a refreshing change of pace, an homage to the original and not an attempt to kick start another wave of franchise additions or change the outcomes for the characters.

[Image: Lionsgate Films, et al]

Hani