Recent Horror Positives
by Kristin Battestella
Though
not shining examples of perfection and not always truly scary, this
quartet of paranormal thrills and chills adds a few recent feathers
to the horror genre's cap.
The
Deaths of Ian Stone
– Say
hey, British people do play ice hockey you know – but the brief
hockey filming here is totally fake, made to look cool and in your
face when hockey needs no extra flash editing. Fin rant. Is it
coincidence or bad luck when the clocks don't work, the game is lost,
and nothing goes your way? The eponymous Groundhog's
Day circumstances
establish the sense of foul afoot quickly with dangerous railroad
tracks and rainy mishaps. Though the cast looks a little too young to
have serious financial corporate jobs, the weird, seemingly similar
but differing realities hook the audience without resorting to a
juvenile tone. Realizations, clues, and memories come to light as
things just don't add up, and it's neat to hear repeated dialogue in
different contexts with each death reset. Strange voices, shady
demons, and eerie faces increase – who is killing Ian and forcing
him to relive a variety of deaths and why? There is a certain Final
Destination-esque
design but the simmering ominous proves different as each vignette
escalates to its inevitable end. The lengths vary on each life as
well, some situations last longer than others while the circumstances
get worse. Of course, mobile service conveniently cuts out (but hey,
there were phone booths not so long ago!) and the black shadowy
effects look too Harry
Potter Dementors
at times, but the demons are tolerable because the focus isn't on
them or any unnecessary sweeping reveals and torture gruesome.
Darkness and lighting schemes, scary hospital equipment, snarling,
and sharp, knife like appendages do more in creating peril. While
some of the exposition and explanations lose steam in the end,
turning convoluted between love and light or life and death, the lure
and conflict remains interesting. On which side does Ian belong? The
sinister frame creates enough entertainment for this personal man
versus his nature spooky.
Honeymoon
– The wedding video to
start this 2014 newlywed tale featuring Rose Leslie (Game
of Thrones) and Harry Treadaway
(Penny Dreadful) feels
cheesy and contrived – today's unnecessary, pedestrian exposition
even if it is the shrewd, cheap way to avoid filming a big wedding
scene. The pretty lakeside and isolated cabin with no cell phone
reception, however, makes things difficult for the seemingly
insufferable couple. It turns out the hot and heavy young lovers
don't know the big things they should know about each other before
the nuptials, such as their thoughts on children, not to mention
cooking abilities, surprising outdoor skills, sleepwalking, and you
know, if one of them has ever killed anything. Fortunately, the
conversations are honest with genuine dialogue creating parallels on
how marriage, the prospect of family, or two becoming one can be
difficult adjustments for some to make. It is tough to discern where
this takes place – French quips and hockey references hint of a
Canadian bizarre – but the intimate setting and small ensemble work
well with no need for major effects or crazy film making to build the
suspicious atmosphere. There's a touch of equal opportunity nudity,
too, but that lack of history, jealousy, and alpha male comparisons
crack the idyllic as the strange lights, electrical buzzing,
mysterious skin marks, and missing persons increase. This does take a
half hour to get interesting, people stupidly go off into the dark
woods unprepared, the twist is somewhat obvious, and a convenient
security camera serves as a research montage moment, but thankfully,
the characters remain interesting as the sex and marital discord
turns into paranoia. It's not perfect but the mood and performances
do a lot with minimal set pieces, and the time here is enjoyable and
worth seeing through as the crazy and bloody escalates.
Horns
– Sunshiny, sometimes saucy flashbacks and seemingly good childhood
fun quickly turns into a bleak pad, dorky Gremlin car, angry
protests, and heaps of judgment for Harry Potter star
Daniel Radcliffe in this two hour paranormal mystery. His
Seattle DJ Ig – complete with some kind of strange accent – is
accused of murdering his girlfriend, and mysterious fires, missing
evidence, legal technicalities, and local lynch mob mentalities
contribute to the persecution. Although the flashbacks smartly come
during surgical sleep, hallucinations, or mystical and drugged
stupors, the intermittent narration may not help much and the
subtitles don't match the dialogue. Religious questions, turning away
from God debates, and the inability of faith to save one from murder
aren't explored in full depth and more Biblical references feel
reduced by perhaps unnecessary comedic scenes regarding the titular
growths. Some of the mythos and explanations are sloppy, questionable
plot points could have been tighter, and perhaps there isn't a lot of
rewatchability once the case is solved. The uneven mix of spiritual
and comedy should have been decided one way or the other as well,
smoothing the bumpy spots and creating a deeper and more nuanced
drama. Fortunately, the devilish pain and angelic retribution over
love and suffering are felt nonetheless as the nonchalant horn
reactions reveal surprising truths regarding affairs, sexual
proclivities, drug use, and your garden variety evil tendencies. The
bizarre and supernatural investigation doesn't shy away from
humorous, frank, and twisted parental truths, and the horns
themselves and more snake and pitchfork devilish attributions grow as
the the mystery unfolds. Ig's use of his truth revealing power
doesn't always work to his advantage in this freaky form of justice,
but one and all face their demons in this entertaining little piece.
Starry
Eyes –
Creepy menus, thumping music, and heavy breathing start this 2014
partially Kickstarter funded but no less impressive horror look at
life imitating art Hollywood cult and cutthroat. From one
overambitious waitress pulling her hair out after bad readings and
frenemy actress competition to wannabe director pervs at parties and
everyone with a script looking to get a girl on the casting couch,
the disrobings for the camera and bright spotlights remain
uncomfortable and untrustworthy before
the nasty and scares. Suggestive evening meetings with an icky old
man producer and encouragement in forgoing inhibitions to get ahead
in the rat race of fame reflect on real life ambitions and creepy sex
for roles as the ugly, primal desperation increases, bizarre extremes
escalate, and sinister gruesome mounts. The naive, awe moments and
slow motion pretty do get too far from the horror possibilities at
times, and the acting commentary and movie making dreams sometimes
feel pretentious or heavy handed. Some dialogue becomes too much
interfering voice from co-writers and directors Kevin Kolsch and
Dennis Widmyer (Identical
Dead Sisters) where
the brainwashing and ritualistic taking the place of actual sex,
drugs, and rock-n-roll destruction already does plenty. The secondary
male cast also seems weak and the girls feel too much of the
unlikeable same, but fortunately, Alexandra Essoe (Tales
of Halloween)
is a fine, relatable anchor carrying the piece, be it hopeful or
horrific. Very brief nudity, lingerie suggestions, and just enough
gore keep from being excessive – no extreme music or in your face
editing distracts from the slow, dirty, tough, and bloody death
scenes. I'm rarely squeamish, but some of decomposing body horrors
got me! Though the intercutting can be confusing, voiceovers are
unnecessary, and there may be a few plot holes, this was surprisingly
better then some wider releases and supposedly bigger horror outings.
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