Vultural

Cave Of Forgotten Dreams - 2011 - 7/10

Outstanding Werner Herzog documentary filmed inside the Chauvet caves of southern France.
Cave interiors have the oldest paintings known to exist, 30,000 years old.
The cliff face fell tens of thousands of years ago, sealing the original entrance, and protecting the art from us, the rabble.
Access was sealed immediately by French authorities after its discovery in 1994, so Herzog’s film will likely be the only view any of us ever see.
Wanted to dock this a point for intrusive music.

Alraune - 1928 - 6/10
AKA - A Daughter Of Destiny

Silent version of Hanns Heinz Ewers’ mandrake tale stars Brigitte Helm.
The daughter of a prostitute and an executed criminal, she is the ward of an obsessive professor.
Around her is a litter of longing males, who leave her curiously uninterested.
Flawed film suffers broad over-acting and choppy narrative, perhaps from censored footage.
The movie swirls with nervous energy throughout, and will appeal to Weimar cinema buffs.
Musical score is classical medleys (predominately Mussorgsky and Debussy) with jazz combo tossed into nightclub scenes.

There are two earlier versions.
A 1919 one, directed by Curtiz, considered lost, and an extant 1918 which I have been unable to track down.
There are also two later versions.

Alraune - 1930 - 6/10

Sound version of the 1928. Brigitte Helm reprises the lead, with new director and cast.
The “mandrake myth” is most pronounced in this, as are the scientific dabbler’s motivations and collaborators.
In this, the princess, desiring an heir, is the trial run.
Alraune, however, is the breakthrough, an artificial experiment brought to adult fruition.
Helm not only plays Alraune, but also Alma, the prostitute incubator.
During her turn singing a cabaret number, one can easily understand why she was Von Sternberg’s original choice for Lola Lola in Der Blaue Angel.
Typical of an early talkie, static camerawork seems rudimentary, the pace is dreary.
Both prints I viewed were nth generation soft, and overlaid with hard Danish subs.
Sound leaves much to be desired, but is passable.

Alraune - 1952 - 6/10
AKA - Mandragore

The luminous Hildegard Knef stars as the bewitching siren.
She is at times childlike, other times maliciously cruel.
Heavy mortality among male admirers, nonetheless.
Camerawork is high Gothic, and the costumes and interiors evoke Douglas Sirk.
As with other versions, the mandrake root is referenced, but the fable, the magic, is underplayed.
Instead, the subcurrent is of eugenics, which would have been an unsettling taboo in post World War II.
The Klimt inspired set design is a highlight.

The Black Widow - 1947 - 6/10

A fun serial from Republic, and a slyly subversive one.
Usual nonsense about an evil potentate scheming to rule the world …
The “smartest guy” was not the manly hero.
No, it was Sombra, the Black Widow (played by the deliciously slinky Carol Forman), daughter of the poobah.
She leads her henchmen, devises strategies, overcomes police and Feds.

Bit by bit, she steals rocket parts and eludes capture.
The police put in charge a writer! Ha ha, that’s right, a writer of detective stories.
I guess producers did not want to stoop all the way down to using an English major.
He is assigned a female reporter. Typical of the period, he constantly condescends and belittles her.
Episode after episode, he gets trapped or overpowered, and she’s the one who comes to his rescue.
Viewed over several weeks, amusing enough.

Demon Eye - 2019 - 4/10

Way out on the moor wastelands, Dad, troubled by “something,” kills himself.
Next beat, his long estranged daughter flies in from the States to find out what happened.
Backstory pertains to a village girl from 1850’s who fashioned a tin amulet and prophesied doom and gloom for sinning, wayward locals.
Right quick she is burnt (well, no one likes debbie downer) and the village begins to wither.
So, will that Yank lass find that long lost demon amulet?
Fine outdoor scenery undercut by damn near everything else.
An OK premise, but producers seem so obsessed with avoiding clichés that they pile on inventive, ridiculous alternatives.
For example, throughout, a crying baby doll wails and is supposedly scary. To whom? Audience males who’ve just found out they got their girlfriend’s sister pregnant?
Most of the characters resemble street bums – there is a dog, we never see – John & Sadie?
Stupid film, that could have been better had fools not been in charge.
Almost, but not quite, a “bad cinema” pleasure, though connoisseurs will want to seek this out.
There is a birthing sequence that had me laughing out loud.

Certified Copy - 2010 - 7/10
AKA - Copie Conforme

Confusing, talky French movie set in Tuscany.
A couple meet at a book lecture, then go on a small road trip.
Inside a coffee shop, all points of reference shift.
Dense film, packed with mysteries and revelations.
Questions whether a copy is equal to an original, or superior, are debated.
Deliberately composed to be misleading - for example - does the couple know each other?
Is a sham relationship better than a failing one?
In French, English and Italian.
Juliette Binoche stars. Gorgeous scenery. Definite arthouse fare.

Nobody - 1999 - 6/10
AKA - だれも

Decent video thriller of three fashionably dressed office men who casually insult another trio.
The other three, while less clothes conscious, are more comfortable with violence.
Events swiftly get ugly.
Low budget is disguised using night settings and rainy environment.
Then there is the female model, a fetching siren who “loses” accessories.
Not a bad flick, though a few reveals are preposterous.

Cheri - 2009 - 5/10

Michelle Pfeiffer stars as an aging Parisian courtesan (prostitute), who has lengthy affair with the 19 year old son of a rival.
Somewhat based on the novel by Collette, though the book focused on Cheri (the son) while the movie showcases Lea.
Glossy trash.

Hitchcock - 1986 - 6/10

From the BBC Omnibus series, this shallow overview came out a few years after his death.
First part covers his English era and early US years.
Second half covers his prime years and “decline.”
Talking heads are a mixed lot, and most seem a tad dismissive, the writers especially so.
Some actresses also aired their laundry. Again, this was released within a few years of his death.
Smattering of film clips with major omissions (The Lodger, Lifeboat, Notorious, To Catch A Thief, many others).
Worse, spoilers mar the film reviews (in 1986, most filmgoers had viewed the majority of Hitchcock’s movies).

More recommended would be Alfred Hitchcock and David O. Selznick Collaborations, a documentary covering his early years in the States and lengthy struggles with the obsessive producer.

Gantz - 2010 - 6/10
AKA - 前編

Japanese Sci-Fi - Horror - action film based on popular manga.
Recently deceased souls were revived by Gantz, a large black sphere, to eliminate aliens among us.
Aliens are at once ordinary and strange.
If combatants succeed, points are awarded. 100 points = return to living. Dead combatants stay dead.
Followed by a sequel.

Gantz: Perfect Answer - 2011 - 6/10
AKA - ガンツパーフェクトアンサー

Not nearly as different or inventive as the first film, but the sequel reveals who is killing those “recently deceased,” and why.
And what happened to combatants who were slain in battles.
More full on conflicts, with a highlight occurring in a high speed subway.
The rare sequel that provides resolution to the first movie.
Both Gantz flicks ought to be viewed as a pair.

Boyfriends And Girlfriends - 1987 - 6/10
AKA - L’ami de Mon Amie
AKA - My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend

During lunch, city employee Blanche meets student Lea.
Both are in their early twenties and talk soon revolves around boyfriends, potential boyfriends, lovers.
The females we understand somewhat, their emotions, their reactions. Males, not so much.
Casual connections, impromptu breakups.
The girls are a chummy duo, and I speculated that if this movie was remade, would producers feel compelled to inject a lesbian subtext?
Decent Rohmer film should be fine for his fans, though it is as airy as a soufflé.

Russia 1917: Countdown To Revolution - 2017 - 7/10

Compressed telling of events leading up to the Bolshevik revolution.
Narrative begins 239 days out, until time collapses to “Zero Hour.”
An unlikely takeover of power, a nation, and history.
Talking heads propel the facts, but they frequently disagree.
Modern reenactments are used sparingly for Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin and Kerensky.
Remainder of the visuals are period newsreels and Silent era footage.
Those Silent films were especially useful, as they were accepted as history.
Many of the declarations by participants were taken as factual and believed.
Worthwhile viewing, though lacking depth and not without flaws.
For example, one of the speakers opines that this is where “fake news” begins.
Sorry, as long as humans have breathed, they have deceived.

Carry On Screaming - 1966 - 6/10

Guilty pleasure here.
Silly spoof of Hammer films, packed with puns, slapstick and smoldering innuendo.
(Fenella Fielding is the essence of smokin’ hot.)
After a series of females go missing in the woods, Detective Sergeant Bung and his assistant get on the case.
They visit Bide-A-Wee Rest Home, hoping for witnesses, but the sergeant only finds temptations.
Classic horror films, TV horror, and English lore are all skewered.
Corny, wacky nonsense is an elixir for farce aficionados.

Georgia O’Keefe - 2009 - 6/10

Biography of painter O’Keefe (Joan Allen) and husband Alfred Steiglitz (Jeremy Irons).
Well acted, well photographed, shifting from Manhattan to the Southwest desert.
Probably should have been a mini-series.
As shown, this seems more a sketch of mannerisms and iconic paintings.

Suite Française - 2014 - 6/10

Can a sensitive Wehmacht officer and sensitive young wife of his enemy find love in Occupied France?
Paris has recently fallen and Nazi officers are billeted with local families.
In this film, at least, the homes have attractive females of varying availability.
While our lieutenant is a gentleman, others act on urges.
Although “based on a true story,” this is not remotely original.
The more interesting aspects are how villagers react to the invaders, and turn on each other.
That is secondary, however, to the doomed love of kindred spirits.
Weep n sleep.

Crompton, Richmal - Mist And Other Ghost Stories

Traditional supernatural tales written in the 1920’s, though most seem to harken back to the Edwardian era. Crompton has a deft, unfussy style and the pages seem to breeze by.,
“The Bronze Statuette” beguiles young Marian, gentry of no accomplishments, with a predictable, if dull, future. Yet the statue, a pagan relic, casts a spell on her. Of all the stories, this is the most Machenish in tone, although the next story, “Strange,” also recalls an earlier, forbidden world.
“Marlowes” is the name of a house, not the splendid manor, but a small home ideally suited to two pensioners. The house, like other old dwellings, has a personality, and can be unwelcoming if it chooses to reject the occupants.
“The Haunting Of Greenways” catches the cuckoo, the insecure soul, never settled unless they are the select. You know the sort. If they cannot possess, cannot be loved, then no one else shall.
The title selection, “Mist,” finds a weary hiker, lost on the moor as the mist rises, thickens. Though he obtains refuge, it is bleak and suffocating. The story is not original, though it is well written and memorable.
Richard Dalby provides a succinct overview of Crompton’s life, as well as comments about her ghost stories.
Mist was a book I read about in a Halloween horrors article. For whatever reason, Mist excited casual readers more than the other recommended titles (from quality presses such as Swan River, Tartarus, Egaeus, Zagava, Centipede). It took me over a year to track down a copy.

Viy - 1967 - 7/10

Bratsky Monastery in Kiev releases students for summer break.
The rector warns them to avoid excess debauchery, before they dash off, stealing food and groping females.
As dusk settles, young priest Khoma and two companions request shelter from an old crone.
Before he realizes his situation, the woman mounts Khoma (not like that, naughty), seizes her broomstick, and away they fly.
Oh, no, she a witch!
Well, a lot more lands in Khoma’s plate. Cossacks, a dead maiden, gallons of vodka, and a spooky three night wake.
Funny, frightening, beautiful photography, with a hair raising finale.
Based on Gogol‘s short story, this is faithful and picturesque.

Carnage - 2011 - 6/10

Saw this first at a local theatre production. Live drama. I hated it.
Film version boasts big names: Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, John C Reilly, Christoph Waltz. Roman Polanski directs.
Carnage remains a play set in one room, though.
Two sets of parents escalate the playground spat begun by their two boys.
Jodie Foster’s character is defensive and one of those “must have the last word” types. Waltz is the chronic cellphone addict.
Even after I quaffed a bottle of red, this didn’t feel any better.
If you like talky, argumentative dramas, jump on this, Floyd.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz …

Dear Prudence - 2010 - 5/10
AKA - Belle Épine

After being arrested for separate shoplifting, two teenage girls form a tenuous relationship.
Unlike what some reviews indicate, they do not “bond.”
One is bourgeois, has superior prospects, yet is adrift following the death of a parent.
The other is harder to pinpoint, save she of rougher cloth, with more limited means.
Both are drawn to an underground scene of midnight motorbike racing, and death.
None of these lost souls are portrayed well, nor are they particularly interesting.
Nor is the film, for that matter.
Premarital sex, midnight motorbikes, cigarettes. These teen tropes were done in the 50’s, likely before that.
Here, set in 2010, they seem quaint.

The Trip To Italy - 2014 - 6/10

Sequel to The Trip (2011) which I had looked forward to viewing, but ended up disliking.
So why I put this on … more fool me.
Once again Coogan and Brydon tour a series of top restaurants, crack wise, bitch, and chase tail.
Well, not Coogan who seems more restrained in this film, subdued, as if he was not keen on the project.
Nor would most relish spending weeks with Rob Brydon who excels as an annoying prat.
Breathtaking scenery, mouth-watering food, with added bits with family back home.
At one point Coogan’s son visits - as played by an actor.
The journey is scripted. Coogan and Brydon play themselves, yet they are reading lines. OK - fake, not a doc.
If you go into this knowing both men play versions of themselves, in a story otherwise utterly fictitious, you will perhaps enjoy this more.

The Horrible Dr. Hichcock - 1962 - 6/10
AKA - L’orribile Segreto del Dr. Hichcock

The premier surgeon in London, circa 1885, has a miraculous anesthesia.
Which, back at home, he and his wife indulge in as their sexual proclivities are kinked.
Others could have warned him. Sex and medicines, like sex and ropes, are often fatal.
Twelve years later, Hichcock finally finds a new wife.
Who is curious about locked doors, footsteps, strangers on the lawn.

Truly gorgeous Gothic movie, listed as Horror, but it seems closer to Mystery / Thriller.
Little surprises in a story that seems to borrow heavily from du Maurier’s “Rebecca.”
Barbara Steele is quite lovely in this, though her role is a dewy eyed victim.
Robert Flemyng owns the film as Dr. Hichcock. Obsessed, cool, controlling, mad.

Chefs: S01 - 2015 - 6/10

Nasty French series of sharp edged knives in the kitchen.
Once lauded restaurant suffers debts, deals with fickle fans.
New hires, a new investor, new business manager join the unhappy team.
Meals are the rarefied sort, meaning €200 will get you a large white plate and what looks like hors d’oeuvres.
Beyond my range, so I watched with passing interest.
Writing is spotty. Narrative tottered between predictability and surprise twists.
There is a S02, chances are I will pass.

The Future - 2011 - 4/10

Depressing tale of two sad sack whiners.
Early on, they decide to adopt a terminally ill kitty.
They bounce working from one meaningless job to another, quietly complain, and wish they were more successful.
I suspect the writer/director was making a point about disconnection - or life’s pointlessness - or souls without direction.
Failure on all fronts.
Both actors delivered lines in monotone, suggesting they were on Quaaludes, Prozac or Lithium.
By the end of the film, their characters had not advanced one iota, yet I had lost 90" of my life watching this lifeless poo poo.
And the terminally ill feline? Mope, mope, mope.

Space Battleship Yamato - 2010 - 5/10
AKA - 宇宙戦艦ヤマト

Wow, flashback to a bygone era.
Earth is being bombarded by hostile aliens using radioactive meteorites.
The hope for humanity lies with SB Yamato, which resembles a submarine meets aircraft carrier meets shark.
The cast overacts, spitting their lines in staccato outbursts which reminds me of the 60’s era.
Fighter pilots participate in dismal CGI dogfights, while the bridge crew parks at futuristic, 1984 type, consoles.
The Captain fares better, sitting a Laz-E Boy recliner.
Every single character is selfless, noble and heroic.
I have a foam brick that I toss at the screen sometimes. This movie, I hurled it frequently.

Bedlam: S02 - 2012 - 6/10

Ellie sees dead people. She has visions, premonitions, hears voices.
It costs her a paramedic job, and her fiancé drops her because he is as understanding as a fish hook.
So Ellie makes her way to the haunt packed Bedlam Heights, now rebranded Brightmoor.
Why? Who knows. Yet she gets to stay there free. Room and meals, gratis, while she does zip.
Followup to Bedlam S01, has a mostly new cast, is more drama oriented, with fewer kills.
Ellie has a looser grasp of her “gift” than did Jed, and most of the characters are illogical.
Nevertheless, S02 is better written and stitches a decent ending.

Hesher - 2010 - 6/10

Angry downer.
Young boy grieves for mom, dad is depressed, grandma does her best.
Into their lives comes “Hesher.” An angry troublemaker with the firebug gene.
Note: this character was supposedly patterned after Metallica’s Cliff Burton.
Slow moving at times, though generally interesting. The females of the audience hated this film (which they selected), whereas the guys laughed a lot. Probably much more tolerant of males barely housebroken.
Stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Natalie Portman.

Metallica enjoyed the film and allowed a batch of songs to be used throughout.