Voregeoisiee

Alfred Hitchcock

Fede Alvarez

I think we can all agree that this movie is actually two movies, and only one of them was remotely decent. I really did like the first ninty minutes or so, but that last Resurection bit tacked on at the end was some dogshit. And didn't even make any sense, anyway? My hard and fast rule that no men other than Ridley Scott and H. R. Geiger should ever be allowed to talk about the xenomorph remains true as ever.

Other than that, it was a pretty decent action movie. Whoever was in charge of casting should be fired into space, except the guy playing Andy was so heartbreakingly sincere that I guess they can be allowed to stay in orbit at least. Absolutely loved that little dude. I want fifteen more, please.

Billy Wilder

Nobody told me this movie was gonna be so sexy? And under the Hays Code no less!?

Osgood Perkins

Three and a half stars. Overall I liked it, but some parts felt slightly disjointed, and I felt the twist at the end was a little too well projected. Also, I love Maika Moore but this stiffness isn't really in her wheelhouse. She did a decent enough job, but she's still got that little kid kinda voice which shown through every now and again and was jarring for her character.

Not sure why we had to go with an FBI agent angle, when we were already going for a pyschic angle?? Just let the whole movie be mystical, who cares at that point?

Anyway, aside from that, I did like this movie. The cinematography was insanely good, and the droning type of horror was up my alley. Nic Cage absolutely ate the whole role right up which was soo fun.

David Fincher

There are parts of this movie I could critique that ultimately aren't Fincher's problem, and are better reflections of the actual source material, but the glorification of the revenge rape storyline and all that is a fault with both of them so I'm just gonna say oh my god let women write stories I beg of you.

Anyway, the actual movie is very well done. Beautiful, great tension. Felt like it didn't know where to end, but again could be problem with the book itself. Can't remember it that well. Three and a half, maybe four stars. This movie makes me want to give myself a mohawk literally every time I watch it.

M. Knight Shyamalan

Ah, to have seen this movie again without the twist.

You can say what you want about his follow up movies and they would all be extremely valid, but this movie is incredibly directed. Every single one of these actors understood the assignment and fucking delivered. Including (especially) the child.

Four stars. Was specifially watching for all the clues that could've lead to one predicting the ending and it was so expertly crafted. This would've blown me away if I was an adult when it came out.

David Fincher

I remembered liking this movie more than I actually did this time around. Not a bad little thriller, but I did not care about anyone here besides like Forest Whitaker and they did him dirty so like. Eh.

Three and a half. Well produced, but the friction wasn't there for me on the rewatch

Jonathan Mostow

We used to make movies!

God, what an unsung, underrated little diddy. A little long in the tooth in some sections, but the score and Kurt combined to keep me pretty invested the whole while. I know this isn't proper horror, but the tension of being absolutely certain I was about to see Kurt Russell get keelhauled by a Kenworth while a tuba droned on a four note little stinger was enough to get my heart racing anyway.

The final act was delightfully high octane, and the effect were incredible, including the delightfully obvious minnie models. Four starts. Adored it! Wish literally anyone would talk about it.

Adam Wingard

Two stars which go entirely to Wingard's darling, Dan Stevens.

Quentin Tarantino

Holy shit!!!!!!!!!! Love of movies restored!!!!!! Crops watered, skin soft etc. etc.

Shit, I have NO clue why I put this movie off for so long. Serves me right for trusting dipshits. This movie fucking rules. Sexy, stylish, violent, well-paced and absurdly well produced. Even the 'faults' I can find in it are just another layer of Tarantino's well executed vision, like the stupid-punchy talky talk script and the revenge fantasy aspect. It's literally called Grindhouse presents, what else would there be?

God, I will probably never get over the actual butterflies this movie gave me. When Zoe Bell is on the hood of that car, Kurt screaming obscenities as he pushes them all around? Could've thrown up from anxiety and excitement both. Then the fucking (literal) about-face the movie does with Zoe riding the passenger window like she's taking a turn on the jousting tilts. And the way she fucking swings that goddamn pipe at Kurt Russell's head? Hooting. Hollering, even.

Four and a half stars. Would've been perfect if we'd flashed back to find out Mary Elizabeth had also beat that redneck to death

Benjamin Brewer

Let my precious movie diary pile up while trying to find words to say about this movie and I don't even know why, considering this movie was so fucking boring I failed to finish it twice despite paying actual American dollars to watch it.

Boring. Stupid. Why did Christianity survive the apocalypse? Why don't I know anything about these kids if the very premise of the movie is found family? Why is that one's hair cut so bad? Two and a half stars. Thought I could at least rave about the creature designs, but the movie is so forgettable I can't even really do that after these few weeks because I can't fucking remember them. Though I will admit, they were good.

Pedro Almodovar

"It's more a love story than a horror story."

"They can be hard to tell apart."

Christ, the foil between the director and the main girl was so good. The way neither of them could decide what they wanted, driven by lust first and foremost just to build an ending they didn't want. The way we interrupted the movie just to watch a fake ad saying that Spaniards are too passionate to worry about retirement until it's too late, as if these characters have spent most their lives bound by the very sexuality that frees them. The way the Germans in the ad who had their lives together were literal Nazis to really nail down the fact that rigid conservativism isn't the solution, either.

I wish this movie was four hours long. It was so pretty, and I'd watch Antonio Banderas have hot, bloody, pathetic, whimpering sex for at least another twenty minutes. Just really pad out that runtime with him saying he doesn't even know if it hurts, Christ alive.

I am simply enamored of this movie. The overt sexuality is incredible. The fucking Jason X movie they're making is incredible. The bright poppy, cheery, happy fun time comedy rhomp color scheme of the whole movie combined with the fun house mirror effects while they fuck and the performance Abril gives as Marina realizes the situation she's put herself in in the very last shot was so fucking incredible groundbreaking outstanding brilliant. I spent that entire scene just outloud asking a fictional character on my screen "What'd you do?" like she was a mischivious little puppy I'd caught eating my goddamn couch.

What did you do, Marina? Couldn't stop chasing that high, huh?

Fritz Lang

God okay they weren't lying, that bitch can classic.

I was not expecting this movie to be so timeless. You hear of classic movies/required reading whatever and you're like sure I'll watch it some day to see the roots of cinema/what have you, but this movie feels toe to tip like something that could've been made even just like twenty years ago. There is so much about this movie that aged like fine wine. The cold open, the pacing, the actual cinematography. We're not even getting into the nature of calling police actions into question, I'm legit just talking about fucking film making.

I don't have like... a cohesive way to string together my list of shots that made me go all goo goo eyed so I guess just... here's a list:

• shot of M coming to speak to the girl but it's just his shadow cast over his reward poster
• transition(s) between the mob execs to the police comissioners giving identical speeches to illustrate how they're fundamentally the same
• less an actual shot, but let us never forget what indoor smoking did for cinematography
• there's a peeping Tom shot at one point that makes the viewer feel like M which is good enough, but the shot tracks up through a window and into the set and I actually am not 100% certain how they did that at the time??
• when the gangsters go to torture the night watchman and the crowd moves to obscure the shot - fuck that's effective choreography

And as long as I'm phoning it in, here's a list of actual funny beats (or atleast authentic, lived in set choices) that held up across time, culture, and languages:

• the bar that gets infiltrated has a stuffed gator hanging lamp
• "Mr. credit is dead and buried" - need that tattooed on me
• (photo incoming)
• one of the extras had a dueling scar!

The parallells between the public thinking the cops do too much about minor crimes but not enough about major crimes vs the cops thinking the public know everything about the neighbor they're just being nosey about vs twiddling their thumbs when actual crime happens is also good. Absolutely timeless.

I'm honestly gonna have to rewatch this movie to write a good entry on it. I spent too long paying far too much attention to take proper notes. Five stars.

Adam Wingard

This family deserved everything they got to be completely honest.

A slog for like an hour. And then when it did pick up, it was in a direction that didn't really interest me. Effects/sets looked good. 80's action movie level of bullets which is sick and they really did a head on collision so hell yeah. But the acting on behalf of everyone except Matthew from Downton Abbey was dogshit and just pissed me off.

Did have a Halloween maze out of left fucking field for the final showdown which was underscored with goth music, so that was fucking sick.

Three stars. Only because it looked good.

Gerald Kargl

There's a very raw, erratic quality to this film which needs to be addressed first and foremost. Say what you want about it the rest of it, there is no denying that everything was exceptionally executed to land you in this fool's anxious, obsessive headspace. I saw enough online about the camera work which is indeed incredible, but it would've never been as effective without an autistic person in sound design. I'm pretty sure they mic'd his shoes, babe, this is incredible. Maddening. Teeth grinding and squirm inducing.

I don't have a good eye for the geography of sets, really, and it's entirely possible what I'm about to say wasn't done intentionally, but I think the house's floorplan being so huge and ambling and not making a whole lot of sense was a good touch. I think it was on purpose just based off the way the protag was perpetually struggling with locked doors even when he was on the side of the deadlock. His last hurrah, where he wandered the grounds and found himself going in circles or ignoring marked paths in favor of making his own nonsensical ones, was the nail in coffin here, I think. It was a great metaphore for his stunted mentality and the cyclical nature of his hunger.

The leading man was quite good, too. A shining example of an off-putting little weasle. Twitchy, unstable. Blatantly incompetent despite his overconfidence. Apparently he didn't do the voice work, but shout out to that guy, too. And the editor who spliced it all together. Some of the overlap was very unsettling.

I do think this film falls on the wrong side of exploitative, but I'm also willing to forgive some of it cause holy hell that scene was well done.

Also because I'm a freak who will always be on board with blood play, sorry.

That being said, holy shit. Sometimes I worry the intrusive thoughts are gonna win one day, and then I watch a fake corpse get dragged face down over so much broken glass, it literally creates a wakefield and I cringe and squirm and say, 'Noo, that's so cruel,' and I realize I just am not built like these people. I'm a good egg at heart.

Overall, I'm unsure how I feel about this movie, which is possibly the final tick over from three and half to four stars. I'm glad it upset me. I'm glad I found a movie that could still upset me. I talk about unflinching all the time, but this movie was a mastercourse at it so I gotta be true to my brand.

Peter Weir

Hm, I hate that I'm so modern film-pilled. I really really liked this movie, and it's weird to both praise the odd dream-like quality of it and simultaneously belittle the pacing, but to be frank I almost fell asleep so many times. I know it's a me problem, that I would've been obsessed with this thing if I were more used to older film making, but alas, I am not. So: while the overall dreaminess of the film was an instant hit, I just wish some of the long shots were pared down just a smidge. The altered state quality would've suffered, sure, but it would've kept my attention better.

That aside, wow. First and foremost I really need to praise the nitty gritty way the landscape was shot. Like, I felt like I was in Australia. It's so strange how like... I'll watch a movie that was filmed on location in a desert, and I'll think, 'Woah, the balls to actually film under the blazing sun... incredible... as if I were really there, feeling the heat. Groundbreaking.' And then I come across a movie like this, where we get every detail of being outside at the forefront of the entire film and I'm like, 'Remember how we used to frolic? Remember nearly dying of dehydration on the cliffs out behind the old house cause we were having too much fun to come inside? Remember showering off after a long day of hiking and finding gnats smothered to death in your underboobs?' My god, did they do an incredible job. It's also very clearly intentional too, not just the logical outcome of filming outside in Australia in the blazing summer heat. We only see this when we're at the highest peaks of Hanging Rock. Down below, in the foothills, where the tight restraints of colonialism still reign supreme, the worst thing to come crawling around are ants, and any flies that may happen into frame are easily pushed aside at the bat of lady's fan.

And let's talk more about colonialsm, eh? It was hard at first, to decide if this movie was simply touching on the repression of the Victorian era bourgeoisie, or if we were actually talking about colonialsm itself. (The two go hand in hand, of course, but you know what I mean.) Hard to ignore the spectre of imperialism, though, when it literally haunts the set:

I think it permeates every layer of this movie. Ground up, we talk about local wildlife like some sort of 'other,' something that's been hemmed in to the outer edges of society. Hanging Rock itself is known for it's poisonous snakes and insects, but not here, this bording school specifically, a short carriage ride away. We're safe here. The lack of respect the teen girls treat the area with, simply trampling barefoot through the brush despite the warnings because they're young and beautiful and the world is open to them so they can go wherever they please. We'll get into the alien aspect of this movie later (hey, did you hear that? Aliens. They're hanging out, too), but I love that the movie leaves it ambiguous, because I personally like to think Hanging Rock itself just ate them up, a personalized hell made just for these settlers, never to be found again even by the "Abos" because the land simply does not want them here.

Of course, we can't divest this movie of the Victorian repression, either. Again, see above: she's right there in the classroom. Weir does such a good job of using the extremely strict, draconian rules these characters lived by to translate them back into modern characters. It's not a new trick, using the very thing that divides you (the viewer) from a setting to show off how very similar humans have always been, but the way this movie peppers it all throughout was extremely well executed. Also loved the graduated slope of 'Oh, they're so excited to be taking off their gloves, how foreign, but so cute,' to 'If I were at some stuffy luncheon in a field with a fucking string quartet playing, I'd also run off and drink with the tattooed help.' And to see these modern characters, living within these extremely repressive rules... God, again, just so well done. I knew what I was in for when the movie opened with one-sided lesbianism, but I was so blindsided anyway! And the doctor whose main function seems to be hymen inspection, Christ.

Actually, regarding the lesbian, this movie has it all so let's get into classism. I loved seeing the way the orphans were treated in the respective worlds they found themselves. The girl, treated with open distain and contempt from the matrons of her new found class, or simple otherism at best. To be told by her lover that she has to find someone else because they won't be together long (also, that line... loved seeing it unravel from vague foreshadowing when you first hear it, to a barely concealed threat as you realize throughout the movie that when she said it, Miranda meant the two of them were never destined to occupy the same echelon of society) on one hand, to be seen so blantantly for what she was by everyone around her and have it still not compare to the sin of being an orphan... in any other movie, her sexuality would have been front and center of the whole film. But Weir was fucking right, in this particular society, Sara could get away with her sexuality. Not because it's accepted, obviously, but because women aren't sexual at all. Period. She's just 'dreamy,' prone to idolization. Her low born status, however? A badge sewn to her skin.

And on the other hand we have her brother, Bertie, who is allowed to do as he pleases because he was never brought up to be anything other than a lowly orphan. He's tattooed. He drinks. He makes fun of his employers and sneaks off on the clock. He can ogle women, for better or worse, and knows what he likes or dislikes about them. He'll never rise high in the world and is therefore free of the burden of trying. He is dismissed by his employers at worst, or treated like a circus ticket, but faces no real consequences for his actions. He never even feels guilt for his actions! (Actions here being the most realistic interpretation of events pinning him as the biggest suspect.) He doesn't feel guilt, or even sympathy, until Michael nearly dies.

Okay, lastly before I go. Aliens! You could've grilled me for an hour about why I thought this movie popped up on a horror blog and I never would've suspected it was because aliens were lingering at every corner. I loved how artfully it was woven throughout the narrative. We're never saying aliens because the characters don't have that language. We're just dropping breadcrumbs here or there and letting the viewer figure it out. It's good! I can see where the average viewer probably didn't sign up for it, though, and I can definitely see where it feels kind of shoe-horned into the story, but I on the other hand, am very distinguished and enlighted and I see the vision. These settlers are just as harmful and invasive to the land as aliens are to us, their practices just as strange. I also liked how intricately aliens were entwined with the natural landscape. Were odd magnetic fields created by something superhuman, or the natural rock formation? Is that droning the music of cicadas or massive incomprehensible engines over head? Did they strip down Mrs. McCraw, or was she in some sort of fever state brought on by heat exhaustion?

I could do this for hours but I'll wrap it up. Four and half stars. Unfortunately, the pacing was a little long in the tooth for my taste but that's a me problem.

William Girdler, David Sheldon

Would you believe I'm watching this for research?

Unfortunately, few good things going for this movie. Why are there zero good bear creature feature movies? I had high-ish hopes for this one. At least middle of the lane B-movie quality. Which, I suppose it was, but it was so boring I didn't pay enough attention to confirm.

Am I gonna have to watch Cocaine Bear? Does Cocaine Bear feature a blood waterfall? Will I ever win?

Probably not, but here are some other W's (not W's) this movie posted:

• Perhaps the funniest case of Bury Your Gays I've ever seen. Seriously, the way these lesbians had their romantic getaway weekend interrupted by both a flirty man and a bear is a damn shame. You may ask yourself 'Wait, why would the movie have them be chatted up by a guy if they're gay? What makes you so confident you're right?' and the answer, of course, is one, Chrisitan Values; and two, despite technically not having any lines (100% ADR'd), these two ladies still managed to pass the Bechtel Test! By discussing chores! Like a married couple! Seriously, though, why weren't these two mic'd? Why mic the guy who wanders onto set for exactly thirty seconds, but not your first victims? You have at least three mics, I saw them being used!
• Conversely, the way they explained the erratic (rabid) bear had to be male because females weren't cannibalistic was so fucking funny. (It's rabid.)
• And last, but certainly not least: That was a whole ass black bear adolescent just straight up being snuggled by the talent! Gotta love the 70's.

Anyway, two and half stars. The only good beats it had were stolen wholesale from Jaws and performed by underpaid actors. But it did have a blood waterfall, so..

Paris Zarcilla

There are a lot of themes in this fairly basic plot. Most of them are great, but it did get a little messy in the third act. I would've really liked this movie if the white family's story got pared down just a bit. Or if some of the... twists(?) were telegraphed a little better. It just felt like, considering the white family's struggles are not the point of this story, it was strange to derail the climax of the movie in a way that focused almost entirely on them.

Three and a half stars. It was good, just needed a better editor.

Eli Roth

"Ignore them, they've been in here two days. Drank too much white zinfandel" cut to a gaggle of teens watching a staticky tv kinda got me.

Eh. Exactly what I thought it'd be. On a personal note, if I had seen this movie even just a year ago I would've said some shit like 'you do not under any circumstances have to hand it to Eli Roth, but at least when he sets up a human-sized oven, he sees it through.' I don't miss the old Kanye, though. I've seen enough trashy horror to know he's neither the first nor the best to do unflinching, he's simply the best connected.

Two stars. A movie like this is what it is, and I didn't hate it. Modern slashers are hard and I thought if anyone could pull it off, it would be Roth. I still think that, I just wish the guy would stop spending all his brainpower on hating women and start looking into a good practical effects artist. Trust me Eli, you'll love it, it's right up you're alley.

Oh, one more thing. Again, useless to critique a dumb gimick movie on it's technical structure, but why the fuck introduce all these tertiary characters if not to raise the body count? I spent the whole movie waiting for the Supernatural wash ups to get turned into mashed potatoes, or for the deputy to end up being the final hero or something but like, nothing ever comes of them? Reveal the red herring then fry him up. Or make him the hero, sure, but then kill off the murderer's inheritor. Ugh. Film making 101.

DirectorGeorge P. Cosmatos

This is the movie equivalent of reading someone's shameless plug and play AU fanfic. Which is to say it's like watching Fifty Shades, I guess, except enjoyable.

I loved this movie. Sure, I'm a mark. You can redress Alien in any setting you'd like and I'd probably like it, but this movie in particular took thorough notes re: production design and anticapitalist sentiment and baby, that's a table I'll always sit at. Unfortunately it was scrubbed of any and all reproductive rights themes, but that's to be expected; my long running rule is that no men outside of Ridley Scott and H. R. Giger are allowed to discuss the xenomorph, and blessedly, this movie had the foresight not to attempt it.

Now I know what you're thinking and the answer is yes, of course it rips off better movies. But at least it's funny about it. Every time I think they're gonna one-up alien, they both one-up and do the exact same thing alien did and I love that for them. You think the mount up scene is just gonna leave you with slasher movie weapons? Fool! Have chainsaws and three fuck off huge flamethrowers. You think the monster's gonna call it a day after breaking into someone's chest? Sit tight, he's coming out of one later. Had enough of mother? Well now we got two moms. And one of them is flesh and blood #gayrights.

She has everything. incredible production design, a higher body count, Joe from the Princess Diaries, the Thing. Checkhov's implosion mansplaination. Everything a girl could want.

Admittedly, 'Say hi motherfucker' was a fridge too far. The sharks + Jaws reference + action movie punch out ending felt like the hail Mary pass of an entirely different movie? It was weird.

Regardless: four stars. Were they earned? Absolutely not. Was this movie made specifically for me? Yeppers.

Director: James Foley

Boy they don't make 'em like this anymore /pos
Two stars. Wanted to like this movie but it's just piss poor. Bummer

Director: Avi Nesher

Of all the things i have seen a horror movie cut to after the killer raises their penetrative weapon to insinuate the final, slashing blow, the big broad nose of a plane is certainly something i never expected. Do they understand the purpose of this shot? Do they want a plane to fuck them? Given the automatic impulse to question how much the director fears the killer's sexuality, considering we have a male director and a female killer, are they trying to admit they fear the plane's sexuality? Much 2 think about.
TBH I didnt pay attention to this movie, but there is a twenty year old man who talks like fog horn leg horn which is pretty funny.
Was gonna give this movie a half a star but there's a blood shower, and a Klingon!Hellraiser puppet, and the villain gets impaled on the holy sword of St. Michael when he's thrown through that stained glass window so... two stars, maybe. I realy wish this worked as a good bad movie. I could maybe make it work if I made approx. forty rules for it, but I don't wanna. Just gonna be my little secret that the end of the movie kinda rules a little.

Director: Joel & Ethan Cohen

Well I'm glad they reused that opening in No Country For Old Men. Can't blame them, it's a solid opening. Weird to think the cinematography was better the first time around. That shot of the blank billboard cutting the composition like a knife was beautiful.
Such a minor note but it must be said, the fans swirling over the heads of our three leads to illustrate their thoughts spinning round and round was good. Also, perhaps cliche, but I liked it.
Overall not necessarily for me. Four stars because it's well made, the cinematography is incredible, and it was so interesting seeing the barebones of so many Cohen Brothers specialties taking shape, but I remain not-a-crime-movie-guy

Director: David Slade

One and a half stars, and they all go to Patrick Wilson's purple hands

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Another necessary rewatch with my partner. Still love this movie, sans all the n words. So fucking stylish. Just wish Bruce Willis had kept that samurai sword when he stole that chopper. Four and a half stars.

Director: Clint Eastwood

Boy, Kevin Bacon disappoints, eh?
A rewatch with my partner. Slightly worse than I remember, but Sean Penn really put his whole pussy into it. Four stars

Director: James Ward Byrkit

Every now and again you find that one movie that reignites your passion for a genre. First twenty minutes or so were a slog and I was not expecting to come out the other side hanging on every minute, but this movie amped up quick and hard - an impressive feat considering I stared at the same handful of people moving around the same 3 poorly lit sets over and over. Considering it's flimsy plot and non-existent budget, this movie keeps you scratching your head and hanging onto every detail.
As a big sci-fi lover, I'm always pleased to find stories centered around average Joes in way over their heads. This movie had a solid balance between tangental expose and genuine bewilderment. I wish more movies/books/stories in general let the audience flounder some, especially when there is a horror element. It's okay that we dont know what's going on; neither do the characters. Thats why they're all acting so stupid.
I gave it a three and a half rating, but that was mostly due to shaky cam nonsense. I did really enjoy this. I'm glad that they had no budget, I just wish they'd saved some money on wine and spent it on a tripod instead.

Director: Neil Jordan

I wanted to like this movie way more than I did, but alas, I was doomed from the start, not being in the know when it comes to noirs. I don't think it was particularly well directed, but it was a good screenplay and well acted so it gets about three and half stars from me. I think Simone facing discrimination as both a black sex worker and a closeted lesbian was a fridge too far, especially seeing as Hoskins never really learned how to get over himself with either. Which, to be fair, may be the point, but don't turn around on the closing scene and make him seem like he learned so much and is now a good father or whatever.
Again, maybe its cause I don't have much of a background with noirs. I know the main character is usually a severely flawed individual and I know its common to roll credits with a sticky ending, it's just not what I usually go to the movies for.

Director: Leonard Kastle

They don't make 'em like this anymore.
Genuinely can't beleive this movie was greenlit. We're killing pregnant women long and slow, we're drowning children, we're smashing old biddies over the head with hammers and stripping over their corpses. It's crazy to me that they made this in '69, crazier still that it was treated as unflinchingly as it was. If this movie was made today it would star Zack Efron and like... Christina Hendricks, and they'd just put her in an unlined bra or something to make her look a little frumpy. The pregnant lady dying scene would be a 3 minute sped up shot of the entire bus ride as we watch her slowly fall into a peaceful sleep while some orchestral lofi bullshit progressively drowns out the bus noises. The little girl at the end would get away, and she would be the one to call the police somehow. Michelle Pfeiffer would play the elderly catholic lady, though, so that would be cool.
Honestly though, the casting and costuming of our leading roles was incredible. Ray was charming and suave, and his descent into outright murderousness while still being too squimish to do his own dirty work was exceptionally executed. And the fact that the screenplay doesn't let him be dominated by the 'evil, fat mammy' - as would have been all too easy to do in the 60's - while still allowing Martha to be unappologetically, well, evil and fat, is such a breath of fresh air. I kept waiting for her to turn into some fucking Devine caricature, but the more time we spend with her, the more the movie insists on showing you just how massively depressed this woman is. The movie's insistance that she is sympathetic, albeit cruel, while never letting you forget the roll she played in all this is a fair amount to juggle, but it pulls it off spectacularly. She just feels like a real woman - one I'd never want to meet, but probably already know.
Ray is handled in much the same way. He hits the ground running and doesn't stop. Capable by turns of incredible charm, manipulation, and unmasked rage, Lo Bianco does such a great job of playing the debonair hustler that for a little while there I wasn't sure he was all-onboard with the murders.
It's not all acting abilities, though, as illustrated by how quickly we come to like each of the victims as well. There is a little bit of the slasher trope at work here, relying on archetypes to let the viewers quickly identify with each of them, but given that it precedes that era, it's just more clever screenwriting as opposed to tired old tricks.
While this movie could stand alone on performances and character work, I don't want to completely gloss over the technical talents here, either. Costuming and makeup were both quite good, lighting was so good it made me remember why I like black and white movies so much, but there was also some moments of intimate camera work I wanted to touch on quickly. I'm not great with older movies, but I can't remember the last time I saw such an old movie get so close to an actor that their mannerisms push them out of frame. It was unexpected, and quite effective, and very well choreographed with the actor, as it was obvious he would wait for the camera to reframe him before ducking his head back off center frame again.
Anyway, loved it. Unrepentant four stars this time.

Director: David Lowery

A genuinely ambitious undertaking, which lands slightly left of center for my taste. I gave it four stars overall but I wonder if it's more a three and a halfer, really. I'm always excited to see dark, high fantasy on the big screen, and the visuals did not disappoint, but the symbolism became a little muddled which is a massive pet peeve of mine.
That being said, I will always be a fan of any narrative that shows how selfish and narcissistic one must be to aspire to legendary greatness. As the film asks, 'What's wrong with goodness?' and is it really possible to become a great man by simply adhering to a set of useless rules established by men who have also forsaken any shot at happiness with their lots in life simply so their names can echo the longest and loudest? What good is that when the names of your loved ones die out long before your own?
Dev Patel's portrayal of a misguided, charming trust fund kid is top notch, though. I only wish his first line in the whole movie was imploring that he wasn't ready. I'm not complaining about the presence of sex in this movie, but if you're only going to half ass your eroticism, then don't even bother letting it hold up your thesis statement.