Vultural

Wagner, Karl Edward - Little Ochre Book Of Occult Stories

One of the better “Little” book series to track down, and invariably reasonably priced.
A diverse sampler of Wagner that includes three stories, an essay, and scattered poems.
Also a poignant introduction by editor Stephen Jones, who has done much to keep the flame of Wagner burning. This intro is a letter to Karl, updating him on colleagues who have passed, recollections of conventions shared. Jones is not a mere fan, he knew the author. Both men respected each other.
“The Last Wolf” is a failing scribbler, not inferior, but reading tastes have changed, slimmed. Urged to write easier prose, more digestible, for simpler minds, he resists as he can.
“Undertow” is the longest work, and one of Wagner’s Kane stories. A grim, muscular sorcerer, Kane always reminds me of Conan with magic. The chronology is jumbled, making for a challenging read.
“Sticks” is one of his most famous stories, much anthologized, appropriated by film and television (Blair Witch, True Detective: S01). A riveting, page turner, indebted to HPL, and miles above the usual Cthulhu attempts.

The Power - 2021 - 6/10

New nurse, rather nurse trainee, Valerie (“Call me Val”) starts at the ward, bright eyed, idealistic.
She grew up in this hard luck borough, understand.
Actually, in the orphanage nearby.
She understands deprivation. Dark is another matter.
And in 1974 Britain, there are trade union strikes and the power goes off at 7:00 PM.
This probably goes under the subset of Medical Horror, though this is more a haunting.
Much better than indicated on review sites, I was tempted to tally an extra point.
Except for the music which is loud and intrusive, dominating throughout.

Andromeda Nebula - 1967 - 5/10
AKA - Tumannost Andromedy // Туманность Андромеды

Turgid Soviet space opera.
A crew finds itself trapped on an “iron planet,” unable to escape the gravitational pull.
Meanwhile, back on Earth, scientists and the intelligentsia, debate, ponder, and rhapsodize about humanity,
Those guys are a drag.
Back on the iron planet, an invisible presence starts killing.
Sets are bad, optical effects interesting, costumes are glorified togas.
Characters spout highfalutin propaganda at will. Zzzzz.
I watched out of curiosity as the KGB banned the writer after this.

Port Of Forty Thieves - 1944 - 6/10

Decent Republic programmer. More mystery than Noir.
Merry socialite wants to inherit multi-millionaire husband’s estate.
He vanished over seven years ago, so she hires lawyer to establish the death legally.
Slight wrinkle - clues, such as cheques signed by missing millionaire, keep appearing.
Impossible, the wife thinks - and knows - since she murdered him.
At less than an hour, this B-film speeds along with more murder, attempted murder, blackmail.
One darkly enjoyable element is Stephanie Bachelor as the widowmaker.

Cheerful and sunny throughout, when scheming or when killing.
Nice to see someone who enjoys her work.

God Help The Girl - 2014 - 8/10

Three minutes in, I asked, “Is this based on a musical?”
The females who selected this quickly answered, “I hope not.”
There were songs throughout - lots of them.
Internal songs, numbers for a prospective concert, others, to quote Mr Wilson, busy doing nothing.
A small percentage will love this film, destined to become a cult fave. A greater proportion will shrug or dislike.
The cinematography is stylized and lush. For some, and this will be the last spike, there are dance numbers.
Odd coming of age tale, omitting the typical love angle.
Troubled girl escapes from clinic / halfway house, goes to Glasgow, tries to work on her song craft.
The theme is of the friends you make in your late teens, early twenties. Your peers.
The ones who help you through the awkward, often painful transition into adulthood.
The ones who, for the briefest of springs, mean the whole world to you.

Yet that period is so very brief.
Bittersweet, and again, not everyone will enjoy.

The Alligator People - 1959 - 5/10

Honeymooning cross-country by train, Paul receives a wire and abandons new bride, Joyce.
“No one’s jilting this girl!” and off she goes, tracking her husband into his mysterious past.
Deep into the Louisiana swamps, swarming with water moccasins and alligators.
As well as hook-handed Lon Chaney Jr., moonshine swiller and gator hater.
Yeah, there’s a plot, but it ain’t much. Action? Zzzz. Horror? Get on.
The look is Southern Gothic, the tone is brooding, but the story falls flat.
One of the last films by Roy Del Ruth - watch his 1930’s films instead of this.

Paris In Five Days - 1926 - 6/10
AKA - Paris en Cinq Jours

Chicago accountant Harry, takes new girlfriend Dolly to Paris for five days.
What follows is the parody of the quickie / cheapie tour.
The open bus, rolling down boulevards, passengers looking quickly, snapping photos.
The 15 minute drinks break. A hurried rush through museums.
Dolly catches the eye of a smooth seducer, while Harry, over and over, gets lost or into trouble.
Fast moving silent, packed with sight gags and situation comedy.
Not to mention Parisian exteriors, late 1920’s.
The print I watched was beautifully restored, BUT had no sound and the French inter-titles were not translated.

Audio Guide - 2020 - 6/10

19 year old art student, Audrey, tours the museum.
Listening via a “smart” guide. Point at a work, and info is given.
Bored, or perhaps on a whim, Audrey aims at a fellow patron.

And the voice provides varying info. From backgrounds to futures.
Increasingly unsettling short will appeal to nihilists and possibly antinatalists.

Sue - 1997 - 7/10

Let’s see, Sex And The City began airing in 1998.
Four single women, trendy fashions, endless drinks and companions, no money worries.
Glamorous Manhattan, hey, it’s easy!
Sue, which came out the year before, explores the likelier reality.
Sue is between jobs, she goes on numerous interviews, she lies about work experience.
She is behind on rent, she has begun to skip meals.
The deeper one goes down the pit, the more difficult, almost impossible, it is to climb out.
No safety net, no resources, just dimming hope.

Three Hearts - 2014 - 5/10
AKA - 3 Coeurs

Tax accountant misses the last train, ends up walking midnight streets with a woman out buying cigarettes.
He suffers panic attacks, she has esteem problems.
They make a date to rendezvous in Paris later, only one gets stood up.
Tailspin from there.
One character relocates abroad - the other hooks up with their sibling!
Mind you, the original midnight strollers had never exchanged phone numbers, let alone names, so the subsequent encounter was sheer coincidence. - Fate -
Or, the hand of a clumsy writer.
There is also the possibility that everything that occurred after that missed date is all dream-time.
An even worse cheat, especially since that notion is postulated yet never resolved.
I am trying to be careful here, trying not to spoil a muddled yarn.
The denouement dovetails to that missed rendezvous again with yet another potential outcome!
Enough to give arthouse films a bad name.

The Hobbit: Spence Edit - 2014 - Spence

Fan-editor Spence combined the bloated Hobbit trilogy into one film, running three and a half hours.
Virtually all moronic humor was cut, as were most Elvish appearances not in the Tolkien book.
Big omission, Beorn. Otherwise, one doesn’t really miss the rest.
The plot stays coherent and works.
If anything, more characters could have been tossed, meaning the bulk of the dwarves. Tolkien never elaborated on two thirds of them and most could have been dispensed with.
To be honest, though, near the end I was ready for the whole damn thing to finish already.
Certainly not the fault of Spence, who has done a job here.
The narrative itself is sluggish and bombastic. Much of the film was miscast - sacrilege I know, but Martin Freeman’s portrayal of Bilbo never rings true for me.
Still, there are Hobbit fans galore, and this edit - easy to track down - is a tidy way to watch it in one sitting.
Fans of the originals should enjoy more than I did.

Naked Lunch - 1991 - 7/10

“… rub some of this bug powder on my lips.”
Should you possess a typewriter, a talking typewriter, who are you to deny such a small request?
Astounding adaptation of the Burroughs’ novel!
Bug exterminator Bill Lee, sampling his own insecticide, grows addicted.
Before he knows it, he is in the middle of espionage activities in the Interzone.
Sexual gamesmanship, a Mugwump colleague, the hallucinatory fog.
Fans of Cronenberg, fans of Burroughs, you’ve already viewed this. Numerous times.
As have I. In the theater, at home, high, drunk, late night. Any time is the right time.
More powder, please.

Betty Blue - 1986 - 7/10
AKA - 37°2 le Matin

Zorg, handyman and hopeful writer, and the ferociously protective Betty.
Carpe diem applies as they live from one situation to another.
Moving, primarily because of Betty’s explosive temper.
Dangerous, too. Not only to others, but increasingly to herself.
Heady arthouse film of consuming passion still packs a punch.
The limits of how far one would go for love.
The photography is gorgeous (as is Béatrice Dalle), and the music is hypnotic.
Long, at three hours, though seldom slow. A lot of skin and friction.

The Night Manager - 2016 - 6/10

Acclaimed thriller about night manager of ritzy Cairo hotel involved with filthy rich armaments dealer.
His reasons are personal - ethical - and old-fashioned vengeance.
A nest of lies and intrigue enhance suspenseful plot. Talent, locations, photography, all superb.
Hugh Laurie marvelous as the cynical, suspicious, amoral Richard Roper.
Watch it, then move on quickly, because you do not want to rethink this one.

Clichés run the gamut from hero who cannot refrain from forbidden fruit, to the wary kingpin who lowers his guard, to the same kingpin not layering himself.
What else? Hotel manager, really? Yes, it is terribly swank.
Would manager of trendy high-end shoe store have worked? Posh wine seller? Mercedes Benz dealer?
Watch - don’t think.

Two Of Us - 2019 - 7/10
AKA - Deux

Plans accelerate.
Once Madeleine sells her apartment, she and neighbor Nina can move to Roma.
Trouble is, Madeleine has family. Two adult children and a grandson.
Nina doesn’t have family. Nor is she selling her apartment.
Madeleine’s flat is richly furnished with antiques, Nina’s is bare.
Madeleine is a “have,” Nina a “have not.”
That informed my view. One is passive money, the other the pushy digger.
Ostensibly a forbidden love story, the undercurrent of avarice was hard to shake.
Desires stream throughout. For romance, for possessions, for security.

10 Cloverfield Lane - 2016 - 6/10

Female, post-breakup, driving late night answers pleading boyfriend on cellphone.
She hangs up, he recalls, she reaches and – screech, wallop! Yes, car-phone crash.
Next scene, she is shackled to a hospital bed, IV drip in vein.
She is “guest” of survivalist (John Goodman), convinced the Apocalypse has occurred.
There is no radio, no outside news, only his saccharine 60’s pap music collection.
Over time, she adjusts to her situation, though there is growing uneasiness.
Goodman’s character (a version of Big Lebowski’s Walter) might be unstable.
A slow burn of a film, yet definitely a fork off Cloverfield.

Suspect X - 2008 - 6/10
AKA - Yôgisha X no Kenshin // 容疑者Xの献身

Movie tie-in for the popular J-dorama, Galileo.
Once again, there is a mysterious murder, with crucial evidence missing or tainted.
The Professor is consulted.
This outing, however, we see the crime. We know who did it and why.
Moreover, this individual is suspect number 1.
Unlike the series, there is no science, no physics.
Earlier chemistry between physicist Yukawa and detective Kaoru is missing.
Big disappointment. See the series, not this,

The She-Creature - 1956 - 5/10

A wealthy entrepreneur opts to promote a huckster to fame and wealth.
If corpses start to litter the beach, well, more publicity!
The story blends hypnotism, regression and reincarnation.
(Actually something I have witnessed.)
Chester Morris is excellent as the soured charlatan.
Broadway actor, Silent star, later Boston Blackie, Morris was never anything less than professional.
Even in this bad, if goofy, horror film.
Other cast members are wooden, bored, or inept.
Fans of 50’s creature films should laugh away.

The Night House - 2020 - 6/10

After 14 years of marriage, you ought to know someone, you think?
I mean, so why did he commit suicide in the lake? And that note, what did that mean?
So Beth confides to best-friend Claire, both still in shock.
Well paced, atmospheric mystery, thriller, haunting film.
Uncanny reveals of convoluted geometry, arcane books, disturbing statues.
All the makings of an exceptional horror outing.
Pity, then, that the ending was badly, stupidly, fumbled. Apparently aimed at 3 year olds.
Same director who bungled Adam Nevill’s superb The Ritual.

Black Line - 1960 - 6/10
AKA - Kurosen Chitai // 奇想活劇傑作選 石井輝男 黒線地帯

Terrific little Noir from Japan.
Reporter is investigating underworld prostitution ring (the Black Line), and he is royally set-up.
One minute he is drinking with a pimp, next minute he wakes next to a strangled hooker, his tie around her throat.
From there, the pace shifts into high gear, as he tries to solve the mystery and elude police.
It’s great how so much gets packed into 80 minutes.
Murders, go-go dancers, drug smuggling, a rival journalist, near captures.
A procession of lovely, malicious, female distractions try to slow him down whenever possible.
Memorable fight inside either a mannequin warehouse or adult inflatable “female companion” warehouse.
Raucous, bluesy jazz score heightens the vibe.

Murder By Contract - 1958 - 6/10

Claude applies for the position of “contractor.”
No experience, yet highly ambitious.
Once underway, he turns out to be creative and efficient.
And as colleagues remark, he’s smart. Too smart.
California Noir spends a lot of time plotting, observing, slowly building tension.
Claude’s handlers aren’t so much comic relief, as frustration expressed.
Unusual guitar score by Perry Botkin.

Burnt Grass - 2014 - 6/10

Somewhat a riff on Multiplicity and The Prestige.
The young couple discovers a patch of backyard grass can duplicate matter.
Not money, not diamonds, but organic matter. Life. Plants, pets.
Or … for the curious girlfriend …

This story could proceed a dozen different ways.
Being a short, it half attempts two or three, then shuffles to an inconclusive stop.

The Wicked Lady - 1945 - 6/10

Dated, though still entertaining tale of treachery amongst the gentry.
Guileless Caroline invites best friend / cousin Barbara to be her maid of honour.
Before you can warn, Barb not only swipes the groom but marries him.
Baby-making? Ha ha. Separate bedrooms, hers with a secret passage.
Soon she beds gallant swains and loads her pistols.
Oh, for a life of crime.
Margaret Lockwood became a star with her despicable Barbara.
Ideal for the dreary afternoon.

Streets Of Fire - 1984 - 6/10

A full throttle rock concert is crashed by a gang of bikers.
Large, bruising specimens, dressed in 50’s attire.
They clobber down resistance, then kidnap the female singer.
Then they disappear … as does the high octane energy of the film.
Oh yeah, sure, an ex-boyfriend is hired to locate and rescue the damsel.
Philip Marlowe, he ain’t. Plus, the comic touches; some liked those, most did not.
Outstanding soundtrack runs like a flood.
The finale had me going, “Really? That’s the best you could come up with?”

Dark Places - 2015 - 6/10

Tightly wound, adult thriller with Charlize Theron playing troubled survivor.
When she was 8, her family was mass murdered. For thirty years, she lived on charity, royalties from a ghost written memoir, envelopes with cash or cheques from accident onlookers. Now the money has dried, and she still has no job skills, no employment history.
A conspiracy club offers money if she tries to discover what truly happened.
And down the grim, trashy rabbit hole she goes.
Adapted from an earlier book by Gillian Flynn (Gone Girl), this has less fireworks and is less over the top.
Theron’s character is haunted and bruised, with no super abilities or genius IQ.
Story is more believable than Gone Girl, and the feel is more realistic.
Note - Not necessary, but older viewers might remember the mass hysteria over Satan worship, with possession and sacrifices, that was a cultural feature of the 1980’s.