No8: The Mothman Prophecies

No8: The Mothman Prophesies

Title: The Mothman Prophecies
Director: Mark Pellington
Written by: Richard Hatem (screenplay), John A Keel (novel)
Starring: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, David Eingenberg

A reporter is drawn to a small West Virginia town to investigate a series of strange events, including psychic visions and the appearance of bizarre entities.

Initial Thoughts:  

His:
Soooooo, not very excited about this film. Richard Gere gives it some good support but the general synopsis on the back of the case doesn't get me overly excited. The wife on the other hand is pretty chuffed with this pick so I am guessing it was her purchase and hoping that she pulls this one off!

See what I thought after watching the film here.

Hers:

Oooooh I was quite excited about this one.  Although I hate moths (or ‘hippogriffs’ as they are called in this household…by me…because I am a wimp….and yes even the small ones!).  The blurb on the back sounds very intriguing and I do love a little small-town mystery thriller so with film snacks at the ready I was looking forward to seeing what this one had in store for me!

See what I thought after watching the film here.

No7: Haunt (2014)

Title: Haunt
Director: Mac Carter
Written By: Andrew Barrer
Starring: Jacki Weaver, Liana Liberato, Harrison Gilberston

An introvert teen befriends his new neighbor, and together the couple begin to explore the haunted house that his family have just purchased.

Initial Thoughts:

His:
We are on a role of horrors (not surprising knowing how many are in the mix) and unless they are very well known horror movies will always be a little bit of an enigma, even the best blurb on the back of a case and quickly become a miserable watch with a bad plot, bad acting or even both! But we pick them up for a reason and having re-read the blurb that made us by it in the first place, I am looking forward to what this film has in store. 

Find out my final thoughts here

Hers:

I laughed when hubbo picked this off the shelf.  We have usually been doing some funny tai-chi arm moves and picking at random.  He literally walked up to the shelf and picked up the first wrapped DVD in the line-up which did give me a giggle.  I think he was tired!  Anyway when I unwrapped this I was pleased.  Considering how many horror films must be in our line-up we don’t seem to be picking them all that often.  On the front of the case was the picture of a creepy house.  On the back of the case was the picture of a girl with possessed eyes holding a hammer – I didn’t even need to read the blurb after seeing that.  What more could you want!

Find out my final thoughts here

No6: The Descent

No6: The Descent

Title: The Descent

Director: Neil Marshall

Written By: Neil Marshall

Starring: Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza, Alex Reid

A caving expedition goes horribly wrong, as the explorers become trapped and ultimately pursued by a strange breed of predators. 

Initial Thoughts:

Hers:

I was very happy with this one!  I was in the mood for something tense so obviously the odds were in my favour when I picked this one (although considering that at least 70% of those wrapped up DVDs are horror/thriller then perhaps I won’t be volunteering for the Hunger Games anytime soon!).  I am not good with the idea of getting stuck underground so the idea of it made me a bit squirmy but I was excited to watch it. 

Find out what I thought after watching the film here!

His:

Bring it on. I somewhere remember picking this film up in CeX and the Wife saying she hated this film. It has to be a must buy then surely! This memory was confirmed when as we unwrapped No6 in our roulette we saw it was The Descent and an audible groan came out from E. However I saw that it was directed by Neil Marshall who did Dog Soldiers and so I was pretty excited. Also when someone hate a horror its usually because it scares them, so we turned down the lights, pressed play and entered the world of The Descent.

Find out what I thought after the film here. 

No5: The Exorcist (1973)

Title: The Exorcist
Director: William Friedkin
Written By: William Peter Blatty
Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Linda Blair

When a teenage girl is possessed by a mysterious entity, her mother seeks the help of two priests to save her daughter.

Initial Thoughts:

Hers:

This was hubbo’s pick but I think my pick when we bought it.  It was a Saturday night, we were in London with all the infinite bars and clubs, and we could have been out socialising instead but not us!  We watched The Exorcist.  I have to say this was the first wobble I have had during this project because I think I was just not in the mood (and admittedly a little bit hangry) but I was not in the mood to watch this at all.  But being such horror fans (and this being apparently THE horror film classic) how could we not?!

His:

This is exciting. As someone who has only recently been converted to the idea of horror films (and am now obsessed) this is clearly an exciting moment to watch a film that has been deemed 'The Horror' film. However I find that horror films date quite quickly and although they may be called classic they might not have the effect on you that you wish. You should always understand how something was developed though so here it goes.

After thoughts:

Hers:

You know I can fully see how people walked out of that when it was released.  I mean these days I think it would be laughed out of cinemas because we are so desensitised to any horror that doesn’t have huge budget special effects and jump scares around any corner but back when it was released I can completely see how that film might push the boundaries of what people could tolerate!

I enjoyed it though I did find it a little slow to begin.  I think you go through the first 5 minutes of the film without anyone saying anything or without any explanation of who this man is that we are stalking in Iraq.  The scene then quickly flits to Georgetown where Chris MacNeil and Regan are living.  The action starts off very subtly with the discovery of a Ouija board and Regan talking about Captain Howdy (the man that answers the Ouija board questions).  She then begins acting a bit out of sorts but again very subtly and slowly.  She is examined thoroughly by doctors and you have to watch her go through a series of painful, eye wincing tests and you feel genuine sympathy for her!  From here things ramp up enormously and she goes from sweet pre-teen to devil possessed nightmare in under 10 minutes.  The make-up is great for its time and helps you see her gradual descent into complete possession. 

The special effects again are great considering when it was filmed and released.  The bed shaking, her head revolving round, the moving furniture and the sticky green excretions(!).  It all added to the atmosphere of the film!

His:

It was as I thought, a very good film that I enjoyed watching but it has dated and I wouldn't rush to watch it again.

The story is very slow to begin with, there is no explanation of what is going on. Maybe there shouldn't be and we should be piecing together the pieces as we go, but we are used to being spoon fed plot in most films these days so it is strange when this does not happen. When we arrive in America and the story gets going fully it does a good job of introducing the characters and building up a back story to them that we can relate and sympathize with. It intertwines the mother and the priests lives before they even meet in person very cleverly and does not get stuck with two separate story arcs that need to be shoved together messily later in the film. The film also does a good job of making you relate to the soon to be possessed Regan (who must have found it difficult to be in this film at such a young age) with her trips to the hospital and the treatments and tests she undergoes.

The effects of the possession are nostalgically brilliant and as a huge fan of practical effects over CGI I loved them. Knowing that animatronics were used alongside simple effects of keeping Regan's room refrigerated highlighted the possibilities of practical effects. I can fully see why people had such an issue with this film when it first came out, even now there are elements of the possession that aren't necessarily scary but are certainly creepy.

I was a little confused by the reappearance of the old man from the beginning of the film as the older more experienced exorcist sent by the church. At no point did we know that this man was a member of the church and at no point do we know how he is really linked to the demon or if he is at all. This could be because we are expected to use our imagination but I feel that we are expected to know more than we have been given.

Throughout the film it is obvious how it has been a trail blazer for future horror films,(I swear the house layout is almost identical to the one in Paranormal Activity.) and I am glad that modern horrors have such a good solid base from which they have grown> I believe that I now have a better understanding of the history of my newly loved horror genre.

No4: The Machinist

Title: The Machinist
Director: Brad Anderson
Written By: Scott Kosar
Starring: Christian Bale, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon

An industrial worker who hasn't slept for a year begins to doubt his own sanity.

Initial Thoughts:

His:

Oh yea! This was my wife's pick but I was certainly the one who purchased this film. I have heard such great things about it, especially the transformation that Bale went through in order to play his part. The story line sounds good but I am slightly worried that thanks to the wording on the DVD box a twist plot may have been revealed that could ruin the film entirely. Lets hope not!

Hers: 

This was my pick and ironically had it been on the shelf in a shop it would probably be the last thing I would have picked up (it was hubbo’s buy) but that is the beauty of what we are doing I guess!  The blurb certainly does sound intriguing and Christian Bale can give a good performance so as we pressed play I was quite looking forward to seeing what was coming.

After thoughts:

His: 

Well that was fantastic, a really enjoyable and immersive film. From the very start it had me lost and intrigued. The very first thing that you realise is that all the comments on the commitment of Christian Bale to his part are not exaggerated, his weight loss is scary but works so well to bring us the true suffering of his character Trevor Reznik. 

The film starts with Reznik (Bale) disposing of a body. You don't know why and you don't know how it happened. All you are left with is a post it note (which becomes a plot tool throughout the film). And from this moment on I wanted to know the whole story. So its a good job the film then flashes back to explain everything.

The film was shot with very interesting lighting, using very dull colours, in some shots it almost looks black and white. During the film Bale and the other cast members do an excellent job in getting you invested in the characters feeling for them and rooting for their best interests. It does this while upping the sense of suspense and intrigue into the story.

Spoiler alert!

Unfortunately that build up is hampered slightly when it becomes clear that one of the characters is not actually their but inside the mind of Bales character. This is amplified by the statement on the box of it being similar to Fight Club. 

Having said this the reveal that more than one character is not real but also in the mind of Bale is explosive and caught me completely off guard and is wasn't until just before then end of the film that I got to what was going on just before it was fully explained on the screen.

I was very impressed by this film and will be highly recommending it to anyone who asks or even if they don't! 

Hers:

It just goes to show you shouldn’t judge a book (or DVD) by its cover and had hubbo not been the one that picked it up we would have missed out on what is actually a very good film and I do apologise if this goes on a bit! 

The film follows the story of Reznik (Bale) who is painfully thin (I mean it is actually painful to look at) and is losing weight after not having slept for a year.  Understandably all is not quite right upstairs dealing with that level of sleep deprivation!  The film starts with him wrapping up a body and attempting to dispose of it.  The film then jumps backwards in time to show us how he got there!  He works in a machine factory and after each shift goes to the airport to have a coffee and a chat with Maria the Waitress.  He is not popular at work (through events that unfold in the film) and it becomes quickly apparent that the only two people in the film he has an affinity with are Maria and Stevie (the prostitute he is regularly seeing).  A new character comes into the film (and is the root cause of the accident that tanks Reznik’s social status at work) called Ivan.

Now I interrupt my review of The Machinist to talk about another film I had successfully avoided because I didn’t like the look of it.  Hubbo introduced me to it (admittedly because of his huge overbearing man crush on Russell Crowe but I digress even further) and it swiftly became one of my favourite films of all time – A Beautiful Mind.  (**SPOILER ALERT** the following bit contains A Beautiful Mind spoilers that will irreparably ruin the story of the film for you if you read them so if you haven’t seen it and plan to don’t read on!!).  In my humble opinion when it was revealed that Charles and Marcee were not actually real people it was probably one of the biggest twists I have ever seen in a film and I kid you not that hubbo actually had to pause the film for a good 5 minutes for me to actually digest what had just happened.  And then when you watch the film back you think ‘I should have seen this coming’.  They do not interact with anyone else at all throughout their entire appearance in the film (not even bumping into anyone) but they are so well integrated into the film that the twist just comes out of nowhere (I promise this does have a point your honour). 

So bearing that in mind when the character of Ivan appears in The Machinist it was heart crushingly disappointing when it becomes painfully obvious that he is completely in Reznik’s head as the insomnia-induced paranioa really takes hold.  The reactions of those around him when he is speaking to Ivan just makes it so obvious that he is not there and I don’t honestly know if that was intentional or bad acting but it was a real disappointment for me.  However the film redeemed itself in the form of Maria and her son Nicholas with whom Reznik goes to an amusement park and spends a family day with them.  Just when I was down from the disappointment of Ivan, The Machinist straight up Beautiful Minded me with Maria and Nicholas as it turns out THEY AREN’T REAL EITHER!!!  (Well technically they are real people but they are dead, or at least Nicholas is).  Now that one I did not see coming at all and on reflection it completely made sense but I LOVED that they completely hoodwinked me on that one!   And from there it goes on with the twists and turns as it turns out Bale is the reason that Nicholas is dead following a hit and run accident and it is the weight of this guilt that started his descent into madness.

To bring a long ramble to a close, the film is excellent.  Christian Bale provides a stand-out performance as Reznik, a man slowly but surely completely losing his grip on reality through his insomnia.  Most of the other characters are pretty background apart from Maria and Stevie and one does get the sense that Bale mostly carries this film by himself but actually I think that is probably what makes it as good as it is.  They haven’t padded it out with a stellar cast rather actually relied on the performance aspect.  I personally didn’t like the cinematography but that is subjective.  It was a bit too grey for me.  I like a bit more technicolour but I concede it far more suited the tone of the film.

An excellent film and a definite keep and another apology if I rambled in there along the way (I feel the sleep deprivation thing at the moment as we are still recovering from staying up to watch the Super Bowl!!)            

No 3: Clash of the Titans (2010)

Title: Clash of the Titans (2010)

Director: Louis Leterrier

Written: Travis Beacham, Phil Hay, Matt Manfredi and Beverley Cross (1981 screen play)

Starring: Sam Worthing, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes

Perseus demigod, son of Zeus, battles minions of the underworld to stop them from conquering heaven and earth.  

Initial thoughts:

Her

In all honesty I was a bit indifferent with this one.  I had heard that it largely got panned by critics when it first came out (many moons ago!) but I do quite like a good action film when I am in the mood so I wasn't unhappy with the choice.  Plus on reading the back it transpired it had quite the star studded cast so I was intrigued to see what it had to offer!

Him

Oooooo this is a tricky one! Love the idea, love the fact its from the guys who brought us 300, love the actors in it....... yet there is a stigma attached to this film that its not going to be as good as all these elements should make it. We shall see.

After thoughts:

Her

Well that was..... interesting!! Excitement in the first 5 minutes to see that Pete Postlethwaite is in it.... a star of one of our very favourite films (Brassed Off).  But naturally, as is the way with these things, his appearance didn't last and into the sea he sinks trapped inside a boat *sob*.  And so we follow the journey of his (adoptive) son Perseus as he navigates a world in which the mortals are rebelling against the gods while the gods, safely ensconced in their ivory tower on Mount Olympus, let Hades fight their battle for them (however Hades being ever the self-server has his own agenda!).  Perseus finds himself in the town of Argos (yes I sniggered and continued to snigger until the end of the film) and from there the adventure begins!  The films itself is perfectly watchable.  There is action a plenty with giant scorpions,  a journey on the River Stixx and a high octane fight with Medusa.  The whole thing culminates in a stand-off with the Kraken (and yes, someone does yell 'RELEASE THE KRAKEN' much to my cheesy delight).  The gods seem to be shrouded in some kind of twilight-esque sparkly dust which is rather distracting and to be honest quite why they bothered to pay 12 actors and actresses to be gods when the only ones you actually see are Zeus and Hades heaven knows!  By far the standout performance is Ralph Fiennes as Hades - as self-serving and creepy as you would imagine him to be.  The film is rather Game of Thrones like and most of the likable characters are killed off in about a 5 minute window leaving you feeling rather bereft.  All in all, a watchable film with a plot that had just enough unpredictability to keep you watching and a bit of eye candy for both men and women.  Not bad and most probably a keep!

Him

Over all I enjoyed this film. It had good action scenes, it was over all well acted (which despite the big names I thought would be let down by the supporting actors) and the plot was basic but easy to follow with a good pace.

The visual effects were great. The giant scorpions were fantastic, I take my hat off to the actors who have to fight these things on a green screen with out seeing the actual monsters. This action sequence introduced us to an element I was not so keen on, the strange half wood, half man half mage things that had a very limited back story and I am not so sure on why they were there.

The effects for the Kraken were just as good and made the end action scene an exciting watch.

The stand out performance in the film for me was Ralph Finnes playing the bad Hades, he put a creepy, sullen mood to the otherwise very shiny gods of Olympus that were very distracting and in a lower league than this evil bad guy.

The film introduced two comedy characters as the hunters who were to accompany the Argonauts to save Argos. Then these characters got lost, they were set up to play a larger role which sadly were not then allowed to fulfil. I think they would have introduced a welcome extra element to the film.

Up to the very last moment of the film it was an enjoyable and watchable action film which I would class as an empty Sunday filler. However in the last scene Zeus brings back the 'love interest' of Perseus who was murdered earlier in the film. This to me was very unnecessary and a very cheap trick that was redundant and left me with a sour feeling towards this film.     

No2: White Noise:The Light

Title: White Noise: The Light

Director: Patrick Lussier

Writer: Matt Venne

Starring: Nathan Fillion, Katee Sackhoff, Craig Fairbass

Following the loss of his family, a man attempts suicide only to discover upon waking that he can identify people who are about to die. But when he tries  to save people from their fate, he discovers there is an ultimate price to be paid for interfering with the natural order of life and death.

Initial thoughts:

His

I had not heard of this film before. The concept sounds very interesting even if a little obvious. It is a well known fact that you can't mess with fate without facing the consequences. Am looking forward to see how this film deals with these consequences. I have enjoyed Nathan Fillion from Firefly and Serenity and who doesn't know Starbuck! Am looking forward to our No2 pick.

Hers

Knowing my taste in films this was more than likely my pick.  I remember watching the first White Noise and enjoying it so naturally this one sparked my interest when I picked it up (plus it was like 50 pence in CEX so you know....)  Going by hubbo's comments above I had no earthly idea who Starbuck was but I recognised her from the big-bag theory, the lead male had a slightly familiar look about him and there was a British 'bad guy' - what's not to love!!  I was looking forward to it.

After Thoughts:

His

I was hooked from the beginning of this film. Having thought that I would be able to read this narrative quite easily, I was wrong. From the very moment in the diner when the first shock comes, I was left guessing as to why these things were happening. After this initial surprise the film did become a little predictable at times although throughout it did keep throwing in twists that surprised.

The pace of the film was good with very few moments where you wished it would hurry up. This pace did hinder the understanding of the story a little especially at the end where I am still not quite sure what happened or how. Despite this I was invested with the twists and turns of what could easily be an easily predictable plot.

The acting was enjoyable, their was good chemistry between Fillion and Sackhoff which got you invested in the story.

Although the concept of the story is not a new one; man finds out he can see who is going to die and uses his power to save them before realising their are consequences, this film tells the story in a way that keeps you guessing at the finer details throughout.

All in all an enjoyable film that may well stay on the shelf.

Hers

I have to say overall I was a little bit disappointed with this film which I am surprised at because I love this sort of thing but I think in loving it I have built myself up a ridiculously high standard that it is difficult to meet.

Having said that the film started well enough, jumping right into the plot with gusto which I like (none of this stretching it out for ages which can be so tiresome!)  It goes from 0-60 in the space of about 5 minutes and I think the first comment out of my mouth after it started was "Well that escalated quickly!".

The story was in equal measures predictable and surprising and they got me with that - I watched without fidgeting to the end which is no mean feat.  My criticism was that the ending was a bit lacklustre.  They have clearly left themselves open to a sequel which is fine but they have done so at the expense of tying up even the most basic elements of the storyline.  Does he join his wife and child? Does she join her husband?  Who in the name of god are all these ghosts that keep appearing every so often and form some sort of day of the dead parade at the end?  Too many loose ends for me to enjoy the ending. 

Fillion and Starbuck had some good on-screen chemistry but by far my favourite performance was that of Craig Fairbass though still the eternal mystery remains why, in the eyes of the US, us Brits are only good for evil roles!

All in all I think it will stay on the shelf and I think with another watch I will enjoy it that little bit more.