Review: Evil Dead

Year: 2013

Director: Fede Alvarez

Screenplay: Fede Alvarez, Rodo Sayagues, Diablo Cody

Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Lou Taylor Pucci, Jessica Lucas, Elizabeth Blackmore

Synopsis is here

If there's one complaint I have with remakes, it is that there seems to be a belief that cash is a perfect match up to go up against an original product in which it basis was created around fearlessness, accident and dedication to the vision. The belief of traipsing over the first rendition is not new, nor is it one I completely disagree with. But films like The Evil Dead are a perfect example. The timing is off, acting iffy and at the worst of times the camera placement decapitates more heads than the axe does in the film itself. But it's budget limitation quickly becomes part of its essence. It is considered not only a horror classic, but a horror untouchable. A piece that should not be touched in order to be retouched, redone or remade. But of course in this day and age that means even less than before. 

So here we are with a remake of Evil Dead, something that many feel shouldn't be. Much like the name of one of the demons that appear within this redux, some will consider this an Abomination. It's understandable. It is definitely not your fathers The Evil Dead, particularly when it comes to delivering a general creepy tone. For all it's thrift, Evil Dead 81 placed hard graft in its general tone. Evil Dead 2013 isn't "scary" and for that it should have failed with me. Yet as a splatterfest, Evil Dead is not only out rivals the original with a plethora of plasma, but it's relentlessness delivery is a huge amount of fun. 

Evil Dead does more than enough to bring a certain degree of wildness back to mainstream U.S. horror. The comparisons to Cabin in the Woods are understandable, however, as subversive as Drew Goddard wink to the fans was, Evil Dead wishes to remind you that such movies can be played out without snark and still bring around enough abject weirdness to make it stand apart from some of the more drab modern counterparts. The films climatic moments are so brazenly absurd, that I was squirming excitedly in my chair with a disturbing amount of bloodlust. 

Not to say I didn't want the cast of ED2013 to all perish. Quite simply, the film lands us with a basic yet effective redemption tale with spirited and likeable cast that is able to generate more than a fair amount of suspense. I wanted to know how far we were going to fall down the rabbit hole. Its been a while since I've had that feeling with a gore film of this nature. The film isn't wildly original in its violence (the film borrows liberally from The Exorcist a little too much) nor should it have to be. The film's narrative appears to be more in line with Scream 4 in that the plot is skewed enough to give off the feeling that the demonic intrusions could flip on at any time. There's something disturbingly heartening about having a feeling which any of these old friends can be extinguished. But at least I felt like they know each other. 

It is true that the films slickness is evident in its visuals and set design. While not it doesn't hold the sickly Platinum Dunes palette that drives die hards mad, it could do with a bit more of the originals sweat and grime. You get the feeling that we may see more of this instagram "neatness" to proceedings however let it be known that Evil Dead makes enough of its own impression to imagery that many have gotten used to. 

There will be alterations that might not ring true (how I wish they found the tape), yet there's enough soul to be swallowed by this remake that covers itself with a brutal energy that may help snap some of us out of their found footage ghost story stupor. Evil Dead has set the bar. I now wonder how the delayed remake of Carrie will fair. 

Review: Spring Breakers

Year: 2013
Director: Harmony Korine
Screenplay: Harmony Korine
Starring: Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez, Rachal Corine, Ashley Benson, James Franco

Synopsis is here

It's been a while since I left a cinema screen with pretty much every other viewer hating what they had just seen. I had to laugh as considering the film, it was almost an inevitable. Harmony Korine's arthouse, wannabe B movie didn't leave me so angry. Nor did I leave it feeling the opposite. Spring Breakers' shallow mixture of greasy glam and titillation left me lackadaisically indifferent. I feel this is far worse than some of the exuberant glee I've read or venomous hate I saw, because those feelings would be considered "the point" by the cool kids. Like I've hinted at before in this blog, I was never a cool kid so all you'll get here is shrugs.

From the start it seemed that the poor audience were set up for a fall. The trailers before the film were Scary Movie 5 and The Hangover: Part 3. The T.V spots and trailers give off a glimmering vision of neon, adolescent heaven, where every day is dubstep and boobs. Everything seemed to be trying to attract a certain type of audience expecting a certain type of movie. Korine isn't really interested in the gloss, although it does feature quite heavily. Spring Breakers appears to be more of a skewed, grubby version of The American Dream as seen by a girl group raised on slick surface and MTV.

Despite its gaudy dress up, Korine provides some interesting ideas.Themes of black masculinity and hedonism as religion creep up on you. Meanwhile; the film's imagery highlights the director’s love for the abstract and poetic. Dialogue and visuals are juxtaposed and repeated at different points providing a near cycular effect. These girls are bored of doing drugs and handstands in their dorms but feel that the change of venue provides a new philosophical bent on their snorting and amateur gymnastics. These circles ripple we see not only the small microcosm of the girls but of the violence they experience and the culture they wish to embrace. Spring Break is represented as a never-ending pulsing haven in which the beer never stops flowing and girl on girl action is always round the corner.

However, while the Skrillex and Clint Mansell soundtrack (remember the drum and bass in Pi?) do their best to keep the tone and energy up, Spring Breaker becomes fidgety, frustrating and over involved in its own importance. It's clear that Korine is having a massive joke about certain genre conventions and ideas but he doesn't seem bothered in his audience’s engagement. Don't expect much from the cyphers that are considered characters here. Much has been said about Vanessa Hudgens and Selena Gomez departure from their Disney roots, but Korine is more interested that the actors are who they are than placing any effort to make the roles they play stand out for any other reason. James Franco's Alien, strangely reminds me of Heath Ledger's turn in Lord of Dogtown, but unlike Ledger, I felt Franco does fully lose himself in the role. Squint a bit, and he's still James. 

An indulgent and fussy piece which mixes the divine (the girls doing ring around the roses with shotguns is an unbelievable image) with the tedious, Spring Breakers like Korine's earlier Gummo brings an honest and different look to typical proceedings. Unfortunately much like the head bending pieces of the likes of Lynch or even the aggressive manoeuvres Korine's own idol Herzog, the film does little to reach any emotional height. I don't feel that the film is "gash" or "shit", like I heard everyone else exclaim amongst leaving the theatre. The problem is I can't see me watching the film again to see if it's anything else.  

R.I.P Roger Ebert: 1942-2013

Film lost a solider. Life lost a lover.

Review: Trance

Year: 2013
Director: Danny Boyle 
Screenplay: Joe Ahearne and John Hodge
Starring: James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson, Vincent Cassel

Synopsis is here

For some reason, it has been decided that March is the perfect time for psychological thrillers. Stoker and Side Effects had both Park Chan-wook and Steven Soderbergh embrace the pulpy mechanics of the genre respectively. Now fresh off his Olympic duties, Danny Boyle has decided to entrance viewers with a contorted tale which properly had writers wondering if they can use the term "Hitchcockian" again. 

While Trance's plot is preposterous in a way that may have Brian De Palma question it's third act mechanics,  the energy and pace Boyle infuses with the film allows one to bypass some of the more questionable areas of the narrative. However, considering the film is based around the questionable matter of hypnosis. Trance's screenplay is quite detailed on the matter, noting aspects that many hypnotists take to heart. Like so many of Boyle's films, Trance rolls at such a speed that you can take much of it at face value. Probably best. 

McAvoy finds himself in more formidable territory than I last saw him (Welcome to the Punch) nailing many scenes with the right balance of charm for his character. Cassel picks up a role that he could do with both hands tied around his back, but it's good to see a Euro antagonist done well (Die Hard 5, I'm looking at you). Rosario Dawson brings up the rear with a sexy but telling performance. She's more believable as a hypnotherapist than Catherine Zeta Jones being a psychiatrist, however from the moment Dawson enters the fray, we know what position she'll be in at the end of the film.

Still the film doesn't slip too much and Boyle has fun with the film visually. At one point we see orange lit motorways mimicking synapses of the brain while the bold colour scheme of the film does well to show up the look of recent British fare. 

Like most thrillers of its ilk, Trance pretends it's about one thing before revealing it's actually about something else. Some of the film’s final revelations manage to strangely uplifting considering the events that take place with the characters involved. Much like Side Effects, the film is not at all scared to play with our loyalties and alliances to characters. After further thought, Trance didn't turn my head as much as Trainspotting or Sunshine did, but it shows itself to be a fun little exercise for everyone involved. 

Cinematic Dramatic 4x24 - Side Pub Effects

The Dramatics are united in the pub for another episode as they take the cinematic medication of Side Effects, Brit thriller Welcome To The Punch and Disney's Oz The Great And Powerful. This might not end well medically speaking.



via GeekPlanetOnline: Cinematic Dramatic http://www.geekplanetonline.com/hosting/originals/dramatic/?p=episode&name=2013-03-25_cinematic_dramatic_4x24__side_pub_effects.mp3 Unfortunately, you will have to copy and paste the link to listen or use the handy links on the side!