Year: 2024
Rating: 3.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Murder, domestic abuse, sex, drug use (namely steroids)
Summary: A gym manager in a small town falls in love with a body builder who's passing through town to get to a competition. While this happens, her family's dark history with the town comes to light.
I think I wanted to like this movie more than I did, and hence why there’s such a low score. I think this movie had a decent enough plotline: small town, conflicted family relationships, a ‘newcomer’ who helps shake things up. I don’t think this movie is unwatchable garbage bad despite my low rating, it just wasn’t anything special to me either. The performances are good enough, cinematography is good enough– hearing Throbbing Gristle briefly was a big plus. I think it situated you okay enough in the town it was set in– small, desert town where money controls everything it seems. I just wanted more from this, and I think that’s my disappointment. The main plot of the movie wasn’t anything special, and the ending wasn’t anything special and more or less felt unfitting to the rest of the film. I didn’t particularly feel strong like or dislike to the main cast and how they were going to end up as well.
The only scene/part that stands out to me as a big plus was the concept of a ‘death pit’ randomly out in the desert and the dad’s weird bugs. On the negative side of standing out, I felt like there was some weirdness with how they treated the scene where the bodybuilder girl reveals she’s bi… Like the MC never even considered bi people existed and just got mad at her for being with a man and not focusing on the fact that man was her brother-in-law lol. I talked to my girlfriend about it afterwards, to see if I was overreacting, but she confirmed that it just sounded… weird. And that’s the main thing I remember of the movie because the rest of it was just kind of bland despite a premise that seemed fun.
Year: 1983
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Body horror, death, blood, nudity, sex
Summary: The CEO of a small television network finds a strange broadcast and wants to learn more about it, but this ends up leading him down a complicated and dark path.
I wrote this review the day after watching it because I’ve been mulling it over in my head. I think it’s an interesting, sometimes clunky, movie. The base premise is interesting and the slow descent into transgression is interesting– especially in relation to comparing it to the earlier internet (“earlier” in regards to pre ~2012 or so.) I can’t speak on pirate TV broadcasts in the 80s when the movie was made, but it does make me think of the unfiltered internet as I knew it as a kid. While I probably was exposed to some of the lesser horrors, you couldn’t be on it and know not peripherally what you could find easily back then (I think back to even YouTube and how lack the moderation used to be in comparison to now). I also think the concept of immortality via film is interesting and I love seeing that explored, especially as someone who often thinks about how “immortality” can be achieved now through similar ways as well (hence why I took up making a site.).
I think the horror/body horror was fun and interesting, even the “living” aspect of the VHS and TV, drawing on an all-encompassing feeling of everything is perceived as a part of living in reality and whatnot. I think this is a movie I’d like to rewatch to make more sense of later on.
Year: 1986
Rating: 7.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Abuse/Violence (including Sexual and Domestic), Blood and gore, Murder
Summary: A boy embarks on investigating a strange nightclub singer in his small town.
I wanted to watch this movie as an homage to David Lynch’s life on the day of his passing. I knew nothing going into this film except its length and its reputation– no knowledge of plot or anything.
I think this movie has its intrigue but also has it’s flaws. I think the atmosphere of tension is well captured– especially in those initial apartment scenes (when Jeffery breaks in and when Dorothy catches him). I think some of the line delivery felt strange at points– but I don’t think this is an inherent flaw, as it makes everything seem stranger. I think part of me wanted more given its reputation– I was so expecting some sort of interesting twist or turn, but didn’t really get any of that (I thought maybe the father is in on everything, maybe the whole family is, ectect). I think the symbolism in lighting and with the robins and bugs is fine.
It wasn’t boring, I was overall invested the whole time but I don’t think everything felt fully satisfying. Sure, the ending was a nice bow on everything but… I think I just kind of wanted more.
Year: 2023
Rating: 8.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Death, Blood, Illness (Spanish Flu), Suicide, Murder
Summary: A man takes on the identity of a muckraker's newly hired cook and leads an uprising amongst the servants during the Spanish Flu.
With movies like this, they’re either really good or incredibly mediocre and trying to be more edgy than they actually are. However, this one I’m glad to report is the former.
This movie was great from start to finish. It immediately sets you in intrigue on the situation– A man taking over another’s identity to go cook for a muckraker who lives in an estate and lies about his involvement of progressive movements, including acting like he’s treating his staff equally. From the jump, the social commentary is there, but it does it in a way that doesn’t feel droll or alienating (sometimes things in this type of film are too oblique or too in your face, but I believe the cast’s amazing performance helps soothe it into something that feels natural instead of preachy). Speaking of the cast– no one missed a beat. I have glowing praise for Mr. Monk’s actor, but Mr. Horton’s actor really shined– a role that’s so easy to go overboard with, but the naturalness to that role was like a duck to water, feeling exactly like that type of guy who loves to boast about how inclusive he is while making sure anyone he deems as lesser “knows their place” in his world. In addition, Miss Horton does a beautiful job, and her role as the person who upholds these ideals and his actual views while also galavanting as a progressive is done so perfectly. The kid actors are great as well– seeming like actual kids and not overacting. And of course the three servants– Kaan, Mrs. Tidwell and Ms. McMurray– provide a perfect performance of their roles in this film. I also love how Kaan and Mrs. Tidwell are perfectly able to illustrate the nerves and fear of their roles as staff– afraid to ask for too much lest they be fired from this job and all the things Mr. Horton promises (but somehow seems to never deliver). And McMurray does a perfect job encapsulating being a class traitor– living as a servant seemingly her whole life (or at least for all of Mr. Horton’s) and yet being unable to see how she’s being treated lesser than, instead degrading the other servants for daring to think of a better life.
I think the progression of the film is done wonderfully. It doesn’t overstay its welcome, but it also doesn’t feel rushed. For a film like this, it’s the perfect length. I think it’s quite obvious to state the beauty of the set they filmed in– a gorgeous mansion. However, I think just as well was the servant’s house, which seemed to only have one bedroom (for what was 4 people)-- which was paultry in comparison to the grand estate.
I also think the meat thing was fantastically executed and showed how so much of it was about appearances and to seem “holier than thou”, even when it meant his family and the staff starving. This, in tandem with the ending scene, was wonderful. I also liked the reveal of the fact that Mr. Monk– the real one– was a victim of suicide after things Mr. Horton put out. It does make me wonder about the other things in the film– Was it even a valid closure? Was it perhaps just another one of his lies? It would make sense why Mr. Monk killed himself even moreso. I also liked how the fake Mr. Monk never meant to actually harm Mr. Horton despite everything– that it was a job at the end of the day, and a way for him to survive– a sad reality.
Year: 1973
Rating: 8.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Blood (not very realistic but plentiful), sexual assault, attempted sexual assault, death, child birth, child death, sex (no nudity), suicide/hanging
Summary: A woman is born to seek vengence for the death of her parents and brother.
Lady Snowblood is a movie that feels like an epic, in a good way. I think it’s a really well done story of revenge that feels built up well and is overall just very satisfying. The larger than life, near mythological feel, makes a lot of the more over-the-top elements feel more at home (namely, Shurayuki remembering her birth somehow). I think the backstory was well done and while hard to watch, it didn’t feel gratuitous or voyeuristic, more or less capturing the moment and the discomfort and moving on to build the foundation of the plot.
I felt like the whole movie was set up really well, and I really like the chaptered structure of each part. I also liked the full-circle of Kobue– I was worried that she wouldn’t be brought up again, but it felt like a full circle of vengeance– especially the horror on her face as she realized what she herself had done to Yuki.
Also– somehow, I didn’t expect Ashio to be Gishiro’s son, funny enough– I was like “business partners”...? But, somehow this all does make perfect sense how he would’ve noticed what Yuki had done to his father’s gravestone. I also did not expect at all the fact Gishiro would’ve masked up another guy– I don’t think they had that good of prosthetics back then, but I’m also not 1. That savvy on the history of prosthetics 2. Going to complain because that reveal was creepy and cool as shit. I also am kind of glad they subverted the expectation of Ashio and Yuki having something– Not that I would’ve been so mad, but I genuinely did not expect her to stab him in the end either, that was really shocking.
Meiko Kaji really felt like a perfect lead actress for this role. I’ve only seen her as Lady Scorpion before, but she works so wonderfully as a badass character– not to mention, her beautiful singing voice which helped provide the theme for this movie. She’s able to portray such vitriolic yet human emotion in her performance. I think my favorite scene is the end, where her life’s purpose is done and she just screams– it felt so guttural and wrapped up a movie like this nicely.
Aside from the acting and the story, the sets also were amazing in this movie. They felt completely lived in and worked well for each scene. The score also matched (again, especially hearing Meiko Kaji’s rendition of the theme!).
Year: 1979
Rating: 5.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Alcohol
Summary: A woman buys a one-way ticket to Berlin to drink.
Ticket to Nowhere feels like a meditation on its subject matter. There’s not much of a story to speak of minus a woman and her adventures drinking herself blind. I do think when there is dialogue, it does touch on some interesting themes, especially the last dialogue on how women drinking alone is seen vs when men do it. I also think it might be touching on the privileges of class in its own way– as the woman is often regarded as rich, dressed in all manner of haute couture and having enough money to on a whim go to Berlin and drink as much as she pleases. Whether this is intentional or not, I can’t say, but it also does feel impossible not to contemplate on this during the movie’s less-dialogue driven scenes. At times the movie feels like a long dream, playing out all kinds of scenarios, such as product name testing.
I can’t say I was necessarily blown away by the film, but I also didn’t hate it. Plus, Nina Hagen was in it and did a song; I didn’t expect that, but it was a fun cameo.
Year: 1998
Rating: 6.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Guns, sex, suicide (not shown), attempted suicide via gun, injuries and blood, death, drugs (primarily injectables), violence, self harm
Summary: A man seeks to understand his girlfriend's suicide and becomes obsessed with obtaining a gun.
Finding out this film was directed/starred in by the guy who did Tetsuo: The Iron Man, I’d give it another go around, but for now, my review is just: It’s okay.
I think the beginning is very engaging and the fact the set up hits you immediately and so fast makes you think the rest of the film is going to be at a similar pace. However, the middle is very slow and often lost me at points, having to go back and rewind to make sure I didn’t miss important dialogue. Granted, is this because of my own attention span issues? Maybe; But at the same time, I think it started to fall off. I think it kind of made the ending not hit as hard for me because of this.
I think this movie is at its best when it focuses on the main character, Goda. I was kind of often confused by the motives of everyone else around him. Chisato, the girl he saved from suicide and who’s in the gang he gets mixed up in, is probably the most apparent, her deathwish and lack of care towards her own life is what’s fueling her, the same way Goda’s heartbreak and want for answers is fueling him. Goda’s arc is interesting, watching him spiral over his girlfriend’s suicide, and the path he chooses to take– an obsession over guns and how she acquired her’s.
The film is shot in a similar way to Tetsuo; Black-and-white despite being way past when color was available, and shot on a shakey camera. These aren’t detractions to it– I do like the styling and I think it adds to some of the bleak, depressing and emotionally fraught feel of the movie. The issue is at least on a first viewing, when it’s not touching on emotion, it just seems a bit slow and is easy to lose your attention while watching it.
Year: 2022
Rating: 9.0 / 10
Content Warnings: Fake animal death (In the sense of mascot costumes), alcohol,
Summary: After the Applejack buisness he works for gets destroyed, a salesman must learn how to make it in the wilderness and eventually win the heart of a furtrapper's daughter and defeat hundreds of beavers.
A movie that feels like a mix of a video game and Charlie Chaplin and apparently had some influence by Love Exposure, Hundreds of Beavers was an absolute delight from start to end. I didn’t know what I was getting into with this one, and I think if I knew the plot I may or may not have been less inclined to jump in. However, jumping in with only the title alone was fine because I immersed myself on such a unique journey.
Let’s just get the obvious on the table: The visuals of this movie are superb. I think it’s such a unique style and vision, it’s really one of those movies you can’t take your eyes off of because it’s such a delight all around the screen. I love, love, LOVE the costuming in this film– it’s so fun and fits the humor and tone of the film perfectly. I love the detail of changing the eyes to X’s when a death occurs or the look of the inside of the corpses– as gruesome as it sounds– full of plush organs and what seems to be packing peanuts. Though by far my favorite costume was the horse– which was one of those two-person horse costumes with a hole in the neck showing one of the actor’s face through it. Perfect, absolutely no changes, loved every second it was on screen. I think one of my favorite visual designs overall though was the beaver’s lodge. The visual effects during those scenes alone deserve so much praise and admiration.
The film is mainly a silent film, but the scoring in the backdrop carries it so perfectly (along with the visuals for the story) that you don’t even miss words. The slap-stick humor in it is great and never misses a beat or feels too repetitive. It’s obvious there’s a Looney Toons inspired nature, and as someone who grew up watching a decent amount of it, I loved it. I think the way everything played out was so fun and I loved not knowing where it was headed at times.
In general, I think this is a really fun movie to watch. I really recommend it, especially if you’re looking for a fun, off the beaten path comedy with amazing visuals.
Year: 2024
Rating: 5.5 / 10
Content Warnings: Cancer, Infidelity, Sex, Blood, Death
Summary: An up-and-coming actress' life falls apart, and soon she finds out there's a monster residing in her house.
My thoughts after watching this movie was “it’s alright”. Nothing in the construction of it was egregiously bad by any means. I do not care for movies that have a cancer plotline where it doesn’t feel like there needs to be one, and to be honest, it didn’t serve the movie more because it was in there. I do have to say they made you feel for the main character, except for the part later in the movie where she randomly gets pissed off at the beast after she fucked her ex-boyfriend behind his back. Like I’m not knocking being flawed and stuff, I like multi-faceted characters, but it did feel sort of out of left field how hard she went in on him. I like the ending– I thought the musical theater part of it was done really well and I really liked the end sequence of the movie. I guess it’s just not something that fully stands out to my tastes, but it’s not a bad movie either.
These are movies I watched but didn't write full reviews for, for one reason or another.
Big Eyes (2014) ... 5.5
Fine enough movie. Interesting to hear the story and the visuals are nice. Not a ton to say otherwise.
Greaser's Palace (1972) ... 2.0
2nd movie I've seen that's just “What if the story of Jesus was a western”. Neither one of these films I particularly liked. I can award points for creativity but it still just wasn’t appealing to me.
8:47pm .. .. // 5.12.2024