Dec 22 2008
Week End Movie Roundup
Greetings old and new readers. For the uninitiated, the “Week End Movie Roundup” is a weekly feature where I review the various movies that I have seen over the week. These will be posted on every Monday. Rather than dealing with the mostly subjective 1-5 star rating system, I decided to take the more simple approach. Movies are rated as either “worthy” or “unworthy”. Clear, easy to understand rating system. Enough gabbing though. On to the reviews!
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The Fall
Rating: Worthy
I knew little coming into this film (a preferable position for me to be in) so I had no idea what I was in for. It begins very slowly and it never really picks up the pace all that much. While the pace is rather slow, the story gets more interesting and it becomes fascinating to watch the two leads interact with one another. As their friendship grew, I cared less and less that the movie seems to be taking its sweet time getting from one place to the next. It is fascinating how genuine both of these actors feel together. Despite (or maybe because) the lead actress being only 6 or 7 years old, she is incredibly believable and I never felt that she was “acting”. This is to say nothing of the spectacular visuals that are crammed into this film.Maybe crammed is too harsh a word. Littered? Nah, too eco-antagonistic. Whatever, the movie’s full of them. I cannot possibly do justice in describing the incredible style that is on display here so I’ll say only that you must experience them for yourself. I will say only that there are things on display here that you have never seen before and will probably not see again anytime soon. I know that some view this as pretentious but I see it as a great example of film as art.
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Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Rating: Worthy
It seems like most critics just can’t sit back and enjoy movies unless they are, a) artsy, b) depressing, or c) 3 hours long. This is of course a blatant generalization on my part but I do think that it’s true that most critics can’t seem to just have fun anymore. Speed Racer, one of my favorite films of the year (look for that list in January), received only 36% on Rotten Tomatoes. God forbid that a critic actually recommend a movie that wants only to entertain you for an hour and a half. Mr. & Mrs. Smith is one of those movies.
This movie knows what you want to see. Explosions, action, chemistry (sorry, nerds. not that kind), and more explosions. And explosions ye shall receive. The movie expects nothing of you so you shouldn’t expect so much from it. Pitt and Jolie have good chemistry together and it’s fun to watch them dance around each other with their secrets. Brad Pitt especially appears to be having fun and come on, he’s playing the husband of one of cinema’s more attractive ladies. What guy wouldn’t be loving that? Overall, a good action flick with a little bit of romance sprinkled on top.
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Carnival of Souls
Rating: Worthy
There are a number of things that American cinema does not do well. It can’t (for the most part) make good sequels, it can’t stop catering to the lowest common denominator, and it just can’t stop remaking every single, somewhat popular, foreign film. It also does not do psychological horror very well. The American idea of horror is having some dude in a mask chase teenagers around with a knife. Oh the terror. This type of horror has been done well (see: Nightmare on Elm Street) but for the most part, “same old, same old.”
Every so often though, we get a movie like Carnival of Souls. Unlike most American horror films, this is in the “psychological horror” vein. There aren’t crazy guys with machetes running around chasing screaming, half-naked teenagers and subsequently killing them in a variety of fantastical ways, and there are no demons jumping out of the darkness with the obligatory “jump scare” musical cue which consists of every instrument in the orchestra playing at once for one second. What this movie does have is some incredibly creepy sequences and a feeling of dread for almost the entirety of the film.
While the ending should be no big surprise (I’d figured it out within the first 10 minutes) it is still fantastically developed and never feels like a cheat. There are hints of this all over the place but it really doesn’t matter whether you know it or not. The whole thing really felt like an expanded version of a Twilight Zone episode. As it was wrapping up, I was expecting to hear Rod Serling’s distinctive narration giving a word of wisdom and warning.
“…when you pass by that carnival make sure you steer clear or you too may find yourself trapped on the Ferris Wheel of the afterlife… in the Twilight Zone.”
