TOKYO TRIBE
This film is so overdone,
gloriously weird, and full of odd sets, costumes, and situations, that I liked
it despite my dislike of rapping - Almost all of this film is rapped (in
Japanese no less). This tale of fighting gangs in Tokyo (which consists of constructed
sets mostly) has echoes of WEST SIDE STORY (in the overall look and mood) and
THE WARRIORS (scenes where a gang has to travel trough enemy turf) but overall
this film is highly original, entertaining and does not go overboard on either
sex or gore. Every few seconds you are hit with some bizarre visual or
character or plot development. Really good film all around. Maybe tied with
COLD FISH as director Sion Sono's best film.
DIGGING UP THE MARROW
Another found
footage/documentary hybrid directed by Adam Green of HATCHET fame and centered around a theory that monsters
(actually deformed humans) inhabit cities underground without human knowledge. A
so so film - decent build-up and good premise but a very disappointing,
deflated ending and also very obvious in places. It's elevated by the presence of Ray Wise.
Like Bruce Campbell and AJ Bowen, he is one of those actors whose heavy
presence and superior acting chops raises the level of any film he is in and he is great here.
FRANKENSTEIN VS. THE MUMMY
The makers of this film
clearly love the old universal horror movies and the long build-up to the titular
fight (which doesn’t occur until the last ten minutes) actually make sense. However, neither monster looks that great
especially the Frankenstein monster who smokes cigarettes and attempts to
assault women. I do appreciate the
effort and the characters and dialogue are competent but the monsters are a bit
of a letdown.
THROWBACK
Energetic direction and a
good script hide the fact that is a grade Z horror movie with a limited plot. It’s got enough scares and the pacing is
handled well. I also give them credit
for not showing the Yowie (the Australian bigfoot) too closely as it is
obviously a bad gorilla suit. I’d like
to see what this director could do with a better script and higher budget.
ATROCITY
Partly found footage, partly documentary
that has one twist too many. Could have
been paced better but I did like how the filmmaker laid out the plot at the
beginning and introduced the characters. The ending could have been written so as to
have more dramatic impact.
JULIA
With movies, you have to have
an entrance point, a place where the audience connects with the movie. I couldn’t find any point of interest or
understanding in this tale of a rape victim joining a strange type of therapy. It’s sort of a revenge for rape horror movie
but much of it did not make any sense. A
stupid story told badly.
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