Posts Tagged ‘mystery’

Who Saw Her Die?

Who Saw Her Die?

Thursday, March 5th, 2009

Completing a loose triple bill of last night (I don’t know, children, European, fantasy/horror – lol, I thought they’d be a little closer knit to be honest) … I have a soft spot for anything like this, as I always say just about every horror movie from the Seventies is worth watching because they have some kind of innate tone that never fails. This is really a lesser version of Don’t Look Now, but it has its merits, most of all Ennio Morricone’s score. True, that mostly consists of a short sting that plays whenever the killer is near; but it’s Morricone, so you know it’s a good sting worth repeating. Comments on the acting are kind of redundant as the whole thing is dubbed to death, but this too contributes to that feel these movies had that just, I don’t know, feels right. It’s worth it if you’re having a themed bill or something, but not before looking into Don’t Look Now and the work of the likes of Dario Argento.

Through the Veil



Soylent Green

Soylent Green

Thursday, January 15th, 2009

This is one of those movies which every time I see it’s on TV I wonder to myself, why haven’t I seen that movie yet, and then skip it again anyway, only to then wonder, “why do I always skip it?” – and when I finally get around to watching it, I just kinda look at the TV and think, “oh yeh.” I of course knew the ending to this movie – don’t worry, I won’t spoil it – but I still find myself wondering if that’s really such a shame as it sounds like it oughta be. If I hadn’t been aware of how this movie ended, would I really have got any more out of it? Sadly I don’t think I would. This is a genuinely well-realised vision of the future: production design, visual effects and ideas come together to keep it marginally interesting for the duration, alongside some semblance of a detective story. But you get to the end and realise that’s kinda all these things are there for. At least, that’s how I felt.

All this said, it must be said, it took me until almost half way through the movie to even think to check the IMDb and see if the guy who looked like Charlton Heston really was Charlton Heston, lol (yes: some facts just skip me by, lol), and I was pretty surprised. Heston is not someone I like to watch in movies as much as a lot of other people – I have the same issue with Steve McQueen and used to have it with Warren Beatty, but Heston is like the king of the unwatchables, and yet he is perfectly watchable here. Other than this, what can I say except it just didn’t do it for me.



The Oxford Murders

The Oxford Murders

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008

A major point of reference for a lot of the reviews of this has been The Da Vinci Code so it’s a real wonder I even sat through it in the end, let alone that at best I found it far more enjoyable than the Dan Brown adaptation. It’s still a ridiculous pile of nonsense whose only real conclusion is “nobody knows anything” and which outstays its welcome long after you’ve said, “Yeh, I get it,” thirty times – but I was pretty hooked on the screen for at least two thirds of the duration. John Hurt is typically fantastic (the opening monologue is a true indication of how the rest of the movie will be and it’s down to him alone that I didn’t burst out laughing over it), Elijah Wood is okay outside of a few very weird accent and dialogue slips (he’s actually American in the movie, it should be easy enough, but it’s like the Oxford setting and co-stars are getting to him or something, and not in that believable way that his character has just been there awhile), and I quite liked the music. Nothing special but if you like the genre you’ll no doubt be happy enough.



The Secret of Hidden Lake

The Secret of Hidden Lake

Thursday, January 3rd, 2008

Watched for Jodelle Ferland, of course; and I don’t think I’ve ever felt so like a sucker for watching a movie for such a reason, lol. Jodelle is in this I think frame for frame even less than she was in The Messengers. I guess at least she’s a girl in this one? (still playing the glad game from Pollyanna I guess LOL)

It’s just a really generic TV movie and not worth talking about much at all. It doesn’t even end well, it just kinda stops, lol. Not worth keeping or seeing again even for Jodelle.



88: 88 Minutes

88: 88 Minutes

Sunday, December 30th, 2007

As the opening credits roll here, you find yourself wondering just why this barely slipped out straight to DVD. Directed by Jon Avnet, Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, Deborah Kara Unger, Leelee Sobieski, William Forsythe, Amy Brenneman … I only needed the names of Pacino and Witt earlier this year to make me think, “Oh dear … just how bad can this be?”

The answer is … not bad at all. I found this to be a near-perfect thriller, with aspects of the real-time Johnny Depp movie Nick of Time but also a neat questioning of the value of forensic evidence akin to the commentary on the death penalty in The Life of David Gale. There’s a line from Pacino, “Truth and justice – where do the two intersect?” which could apply to the revenge movies I’ve watched in the past couple of days. Witt and Pacino are fantastic, as are the supporting cast – Sobieski quite relishes her role in particular, and what else can I say? It kept me gripped.



Endless Night

Endless Night

Saturday, December 22nd, 2007

What a double treat this and Twisted Nerve have been :) This again bears a (very Vertigo-ish) Bernard Herrmann score (made even harder not to make the comparison by the waves crashing over the opening credits) and it’s from an Agatha Christie source, the next best thing in the thriller genre to Hitchcock. I’ve been planning on seeing this ever since I got it, of course, for Hayley Mills, but holding off because I’m not great with Agatha Christie stuff (funnily enough the first IMDb comment I came across said “not so great if you’re an Agatha Christie fan”). This isn’t Poirot or Miss Marple or anything, though, it’s a very self-contained stripped down story that surely must’ve passed through the hands of Hitch at some point – like Twisted Nerve, it would’ve been wonderful with him in charge, but even without him it holds some interest.

Hywel Bennett stars with Mills again (the second of a triple these past few days) and they’re a great pairing. I cringed the moment Mills’ character announced herself as American, but I have to say, I almost want to take back all I’ve said against Hayley and her accents, ‘cos the one she uses here isn’t half bad. She’s ludicrously beautiful again as she was in Twisted Nerve … between the two I honestly feel like I’m falling in love with her all over again. Add the shots of the Vespa and the mini and the hard to believe moment where Mills says she’s never tried a muffin, lol, and this is certainly one I’ll watch again.



Clue

Clue

Monday, September 12th, 2005

It’s nothing particularly special but I imagine I’ll watch this one many times again in the future and get more and more out of it each time. The multiple endings are a little unnecessary though. It’s better than Gosford Park, at least.