Pulse (2001)

Am I allowed to phone in a Shocktober post?  I know John has often admitted to not entirely giving his best effort to an occasional Shocktober entry or two, which is totally understandable considering reviewing this many movies in such a short amount of time is quite a task.  Hell, even reviewing the amount of movies I have to review (which isn’t that many) can sometimes feel like a chore, and it especially does with a movie like Pulse.  Not because it’s especially bad by any means (it actually has some sequences that are quite arresting), but because it has a lot of things that didn’t hold my attention story-wise and a few things that are just plain silly.  Most of this silliness stems from the fact that a lot of this movie deals with the internet circa 2001, which of course is an inherently fun conceit, but at the same time there are actual moments in this movie that are genuinely well-executed.  So it’s this weird thing where the movie isn’t stupid enough to be fun, but also isn’t cohesive enough to actually be all that compelling. Continue reading →

The Devil’s Backbone (2001)

It’s really too bad Guillermo del Toro didn’t get to make those Hobbit movies. That’s kind of been the trajectory of his career lately, as he had to walk away from that big franchise, then his game was cancelled, then Pacific Rim 2 was put on the shelf and Hellboy 3 will still probably never happen. Apparently studios or executives or somebody doesn’t trust del Toro with big budgets anymore. This is tragic, because I can think of few other directors who have such respect and reverence for their material. And no one does a dark fairy tale better.
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Audition (1999)

The last time I saw Audition I didn’t like it. I felt the film started promising, building like a taught Hitchcockian thriller, before descending into a full-on vomit-a-thon. This was five or six years ago. Flash forward to earlier yesterday when I tried to watch the film once more. Again, I loved the first half of the film, but the climax? I liked. It’s still vomit inducing, but I get it now. It helped knowing how the events of the film were going to play out this time. Now I know this film needs the shift in style to hammer home its themes. Audition is a film about objectification and how all of us can become victims… and predators.

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Ringu (1998)

It’s amazing how similar the American and Japanese version of Ringu are. They both draw from Koji Suzuki’s 1991 novel, but the American version is almost an exact carbon copy, from the aesthetic of the cursed videotape, to every suspenseful beat. Don’t get me wrong, I like Gore Verbinski’s version. I like the American version’s polished effects and the fact it was set in in my beloved Seattle, but it’s the Japanese version that should be remembered. It did most of the same things better and earlier. It’s rare I’ve seen a film this scary and yet so subtle. Hideo Nakata’s version doesn’t need big effects or a big budget. The horror in his is cerebral. What’s scary isn’t necessarily what you see on screen, it’s the implication. It’s what gets stuck in your head for days after you’ve seen the film. It follows you. Just like a cursed videotape.

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Cronos (1993)

What a coincidence we selected Cronos to review on the opening weekend of Guillermo del Toro’s newest film Crimson Peak. This Mexican makeup effects maestro turned visionary filmmaker has come a long way. Though even with his first film his style and storytelling sensibility is fully formed, like a butterfly freed from its cocoon. Though far from his best film, Cronos is an excellent prelude to what would come in Del Toro’s later years. Let us enter the labyrinth of Cronos.

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