Darkley year, part II: movies (continued)

Darkley year, part I: movies

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MOVIES

 

'Fright Night' (1985)

This was a fun little tongue-in-cheek kind of film. Granted, there is plenty of cheese that comes with being a comedy made in the eighties, but if anything that adds to its charm. Not to mention there's something to be said about old school prosthetic makeup and puppeteering versus modern CGI special effects. Effects aside, however, an often soft-spoken, occasionally wistful, and understandably cowardly Roddy McDowall steals the spotlight as "Fright Night" TV show host and Vampire Killer, Peter Vincent. A bittersweet sort, his is a character that embodies a bygone era and, with the exception of our other protagonists, fondly remembers the past in which he played a part. In many respects, it's very much like the episode "Beware the Gray Ghost" in 'Batman: the Animated Series', wherein an actor of golden age television steps up to become the part he so reputably played.

'Fright Night' (2011)

Shortly after watching the original, we moved on to the more recent remake with Colin Farrell as the vampiric neighbor, Jerry Dandridge. Many liberties are taken with this modernization, such as moving the setting into an oasis suburb in Las Vegas, Nevada. But such revisions were really decisions that just made sense. And frankly, I was delighted that Christopher Mintz-Plasse changed the role of "Evil" Ed Lee into something better than an annoyance with a grating laugh. While Vincent was altered into a Criss Angel knock-off, I still appreciated it being done more as a comical parody. And we're sure that the Whovians out there fangasmed when the makeup was removed, revealing David Tennant. Outside of the internet (ex: Pinterest, deviantART, Tumblr, etc.) our exposure to the long-standing BBC series is minimal, but we can remark that Tennant made a pretty good first impression.

'V/H/S' (2012)

As is often the case, this anthology was a mixed bag. Though some segments were flops, like "The Sick Thing That Happened to Emily When She Was Younger," (now there's a mouthful) others had merit and none more so than "Amateur Night." Firstly, it fits very well with the main narrative of 'V/H/S', which is ultimately creeps getting their comeuppance. It's rather difficult to watch men humiliate a woman by forcibly exposing her breasts on camera and not feel a burning desire to see their demise. The same applies here, only in this instance it's drugging dates with the intention of rape. Yeah... Moving on, one of the random women picked up during the barhop is Lily, whose name, without giving away any spoilers, turns out to be rather appropriate and her hushed words, "I like you," will be the most memorable thing from this whole anthology.

'Carrie' (2013)

Admittedly, we've never actually read Stephen King's novel nor seen the first film adaptation. Still, the remake made in 2002 is familiar to us and told a compelling story of a girl ostracized by her peers, the inherent fears of puberty, and a twisted combination of parental and religious domination through her mother. With that said, we were understandably expecting little more than a retelling of the same. And while this holds true, we're given greater insight into the story and its supporting characters, including Carrie's mother. For instance, the birth is witnessed at the very beginning of the movie and little clues, like the lock having already been on the closet door, give an inkling into what molded Margaret White into the disturbed woman she is. And on a side note, Chloe Moretz is an absolute sweetheart in her rendition of Carrie and delivered the sympathetic draw needed for such a character. 'Carrie' comes as a close second in the best horror films of this year.

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There are only a handful of horror films left to touch on, so continue to follow along as we finish this segment in the near future. Then, on to television and literature as we move forward in our summary of the past year from last October to last month.

hiatus happenings

Ouch. *cringes* It's been just shy of a year since our last post, here on the Darkley Niche. Been kept busy dredging away at work like a blue collar zombie. Apologies all around, readers. Without further ado let's get the reagent, because we're about to bring this blog back to life!

Although we've been absent for a considerable length of time from the blog scene, we've been keeping at it with watching and reading horror in both film and literature, respectively. And of course there's still oh so plenty on our to-do list. Here's an abridged rundown of what we've viewed in the more recent months during our hiatus. – We'll try to come back to these later on and write more in-depth reviews or commentaries. Consider this the first entree, so dig in.

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MOVIES

 'The Cabin in the Woods' (2012)

When you think you've seen all that horror has to offer, 'The Cabin in the Woods' takes many of the tried and tired subgenres and then turns them on their ear, like your ol' Nanna did when she caught you swearing. I had some inkling of what the premise was, but had only guessed at the tip of the iceberg. This is one film that we can confidently feel safe to say you won't be able to predict. Also, kudos to the filmmaker's nods to 'The Evil Dead' movies and guest cameo, albeit brief, with Sigourney Weaver. This was a fun ride, and it was apparently so for those making it.

'Creature from the Black Lagoon' (1954)

We've been meaning to see this Universal Studios classic for some time, but it wasn't until reading Gary Myers' "Understudy" in the 'Shadows Over Innsmouth' anthology that gave us just the right push. The creature itself, that is, the Gill-man, was an impressive costume, both in its appearance and functionality underwater. Not too many made during the fifties can make that claim. And we've been on a serious H.P. Lovecraft kick with all things Innsmouth, so this really hit the sweet spot. In certain respects, we would even favor this film over 'Dagon' (2001).

'Mary Shelley's Frankenstein' (1994)

Speaking of creatures, here is another movie that features one of its own. This little gem took us by surprise, as we had heard very little about it. And while the names Kenneth Branagh ('Hamlet') and Robert De Niro ('Taxi Driver') don't instantly bring "horror" to mind, it was all pulled off rather well. And there was a rather impressive line-up of actors, ranging from Tom Hulce ('Amadeus') to Ian Holm ('From Hell'). Our only real complaint is that Helena Bonham Carter's ('Sweeney Todd' and 'The Corpse Bride') physical appearance as the Bride was rather disappointing.

'The Thing' (2011)

Having been fans of John Carpenter's 'The Thing', we awaited this prequel with an equal measure of anticipation and trepidation. Admittedly, animatronics and movie make-up will almost always trump CGI in our book. But it wasn't too cumbersome with the latter, which was a relief. And speaking personally, I had to smile when seeing the inclusion of the alien spaceship deep in the Antarctic ice. That hails back to 'The Thing from Another World' (1952) and actually included a number of other bits that I recognized, which were also carried over. It adapted much of what made its two predecessors good movies.

'The Woman in Black' (2012)

When we come back to this film, we'll have to make an attempt at watching the 1989 adaptation, albeit both are based on Susan Hill's novel, much in the same way that both 'The Thing's and likewise 'The Thing from Another World' are with John W. Campbell's novella, "Who Goes There?" Surprisingly, it wasn't hard to watch Daniel Radcliffe without thinking Harry Potter. (If anything, Elijah Woods kept coming to mind.) While his performance was certainly noteworthy, hands down the best part of the film had to be the Eel Marsh House itself. If you've seen it yourself, you'll understand why.

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TELEVISION

AMC's 'The Walking Dead' (2010-present)

'The Walking Dead' has been a mixed bag for most, and while friends of ours have found plenty at fault with it, we still enjoy the series. Could certain changes have been made for the better? Sure. But as far as comic book adaptations goes, this sure beats the hell out of a lot of them. (Seriously. Look at 'Spider-Man's Green Goblin and ask how they go from the illustrated designs to a sorry, Power Ranger knock-off. With a little make up, Willem Dafoe's face would've been fine.) We're still working our way through season two, so it's always possible our opinion might change. We'll see.

John Carpenter's "Cigarette Burns" (2005)

Eighth episode of 'Masters of Horror's second season, "Cigarette Burns" made us think of Robert W. Chambers' 'The King in Yellow' stories, in certain respects. Instead of a play, however, we have a rare film that drives its audience mad. It could also be said that "Cigarette Burns" resembles Carpenter's 'In The Mouth of Madness' (1995), which we loved due to its obvious Lovecraft overtones. Lastly, while Udo Kier makes an appearance his screen time is regrettably kept short. (Coincidentally, this episode happens to star Norman Reedus, who plays a regular on AMC's 'The Walking Dead'.)

'Psych'  (2006-present)

Season six of USA's 'Psych' has included some comical homages to horror films, specifically episodes "This Episode Sucks" and "Hereeeee's Lassie". If James Roday and Dule Hill in full costume as 'Interview with the Vampire's Lestat and Blacula isn't enough for fang fans, it also guest stars Corey Feldman ('The Lost Boys'). And while "Hereeeee's Lassie" is essentially a parody of Stanley Kubrick's 'The Shining', there are additional little Easter eggs slipped into the episode, like pregnant neighbor Rosemary ('Rosemary's Baby').

Stephen King's 'Bag of Bones' (2011)

Ugh... Firstly, we're definite fans of Stephen King stories, so make no mistake. 'IT' (1990) the mini-series still ranks among our top horror favorites. But 'Bag of Bones' was nothing if not predictable, as much as we wanted to like it. (SPOILER ALERT) It didn't take much foresight to predict Pierce Brosnan's character was related to the cursed men, for starters. And let's be honest folks, having an author protagonist is a tiresome trend that occurs pretty regularly in King's work. Yes, it was integral to the plot, but come on. Enough with the writer characters, King.

'Adventure Time' (2010-present)

Cartoon Network's series 'Adventure Time' started with an outbreak of candy people zombies, so it was fun to see this idea brought back to life in 3x07a, "From Bad to Worse." Together with the murder mystery in 3x06b, "The Creeps," these two episodes comprised part of Cartoon Network's 2011 Halloween specials. – Speaking for myself, I particularly enjoyed these episodes as they're the closest I can get to watching horror films with my girlfriend.

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READING

 'Shadows Over Innsmouth'

Published by Del Rey Books and editted by Stephen Jones, this anthology includes seventeen stories all inspired by H.P. Lovecraft's "The Shadow Over Innsmouth," along with that as well. Some are hits, others are misses. But that's to be expected, really, and the hits really make this book worthwhile. "The Big Fish," "Daoine Domhain," and "The Innsmouth Heritage," were among my personal favorites. Be assured that a detailed Darkley Niche review will be in the works.

'Tales Out of Innsmouth'

As mentioned earlier in our two cents on 'Creature from the Black Lagoon', we've been indulging in Innsmouth-inspired stories. And while we haven't yet finished this anthology, shorts such as Gary Myers' "Understudy" have already made this read a worthwhile venture. Additionally, "The Weird Shadow over Innsmouth," which begins the book, was made from fragments of early drafts and reworked into a cohesive narrative by John Glasby. It's offers an interesting insight, although the story itself is a little repetitive, as is to be expected.

'The Whisperer and Other Stories' by Brian Lumley

Referring back to the previous book, this particular anthology is the reason why we put a pause on 'Tales Out of Innsmouth'. If it was to take a vacation from Innsmouth, guess again. "The Return of the Deep Ones," similar to most of those told in 'Shadows Over Innsmouth', spreads their tainted influence over to the shores of Britain. So far, so good. However, we may soon be swapping this for another of Lumley's anthologies, 'Return of the Deep Ones and Other Mythos Tales', and resume reading from there.

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That's all for now, our Darkley Niche faithful, but we hope it is enough to rekindle the embers of those followers who have been patiently awaiting this long-overdue post – like Cthulhu in his deathless sleep. We'll aim to keep this weekly to biweekly, if able. A film or book review may well be in order, come next time we write again. Until then, dream darkly readers.

Happy Valentine's Day

Be mine?

Wishing all of our viewers a very happy Valentine's Day! Nothing says Valentine's and horror like the 1981, Canadian slasher My Bloody Valentine. So for all you horror lovers out there, be sure to give it a watch. There's nothing like a homicidal maniac on the loose to bring you and your significant other closer... Well, except for those couples in the movie. Read our review of My Bloody Valentine (1981), though we recommend that you do so after watching to avoid spoilers.

Since we've covered the original film last February, perhaps Don and myself will give the 3-D remake a watch this week. I'll reserve any doubting comments until we've seen it, but I will say that it does have Supernatural's Jensen Ackles. As my girlfriend Dara would remark, I've got a man-crush on the guy. What can I say? I took a real shine to him as Dean Winchester. Wish I had an older brother like him.

Oh, Jensen. You heartthrob, you. Can you do no wrong?
For the sake of My Bloody Valentine 3-D, let's hope so.

Pink October

As it happens, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Like National Wear Red Day (the first Friday of February), this health-themed observance is associated with a color, which in this case is pink. So, instead of taking the much easier route by recommending horror films with an emphasis or excess on cleavage, we'll try to list films that make notable use of pink (and an association with women, if able). Admittedly, this is going to be a little trickier, so any suggestions are especially welcomed. Here is what we have:

'The Blob' (1988)

Memory serves that while the Blob from the original 1958 film was more of a deep red-violet, the amorphous mass in this remake had a fairly consistent pinkish hue. Breasts also happen to be somewhat amorphous, but that might be spreading it a little thin, there.

'The Return of the Living Dead' (1985)

Perhaps the most, if not one of the most, memorable characters was Trash (Linnea Quiggley), the pink-haired punk that turns zombie. And while we intended to veer away from this, there is some breast exposure included on her part. Let's face facts, the horror films that bare breasts in a non-sexual context are few.

Additional Breast Cancer Awareness Month suggestions:
- 'Courage the Cowardly Dog' cartoon series (1999-2002; Muriel Bagge is repeatedly rescued by her little pink dog, Courage)

five-dollar bin finds

Today I took a page from Rhonny Reaper's book, owner of the Dollar Bin Horror blog, and did a little bin diving of my own. Most Walmart stores have a five-dollar movie bin that circulates its selection from time to time. Usually it's compiled with clutter, namely mainstream flops and independent unknowns, but every so often there is a gem or two to be found. Case in point this time around, 'Night of the Living Dead' (1990 remake) and 'Dawn of the Dead' (2004 remake).


Now, some might argue otherwise, as remakes tend to be rather controversial at any rate. It's probably safe to say that the latter has received a better overall reception than the former, though it seems rather odd since 'Night [...]' was more true to the original film. Personally, I find both films to be rather good. But I digress.

There were several other discounted DVDs that I did find awfully tempting (ex: 'The Skeleton Key' and 'Land of the Dead'*), but working on a very limited income keeps me mindful. These two were necessary. And it is necessary since reference material is crucial to my current illustration project, the postcard zombie prints series. Granted, I have and will be renting many of the other movies and it would have been cheaper to rent these two. However, it only cost a few dollars more to own them, so I splurged a little.

I can't say with any real certainty that I will use these specific remakes in my illustrated series before the comic convention in mid-May. There are a plethora of original zombie films that I plan to make headway on, so the remakes will have to take a backseat. Eventually, though, I would like to get to these.

In the meantime, I can still enjoy re-watching these two Romero remakes. If you haven't seen either, I suggest that you watch the originals first. As far as 'Day of the Dead' (2008 remake) goes, well, in my opinion you aren't missing much if it gets stepped over. It does have its moments, I will give it that.

*'Land of the Dead' will be included in the illustrated zombies series, however I have already rented this video. Otherwise, I might have been inclined to purchase this one as well.

Quirk Books trailers

Likely you have at least heard mention of one or more of the titles published by Quirk Books in the past two years, such as: 'Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters', 'Pride and Prejudice and Zombies', or the most recent, 'Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls'. ('Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter' was written by Seth Grahame-Smith, author of 'Pride and Prejudice and Zombies', but released instead through Grand Central Publishing. It doesn't fit the theme of the other books, so this makes some sense.) Aside from their unique twist on the classic literature of English novelist Jane Austen, these released horror-injected remakes included their own film trailers. I'm no bibliophile by any means, but it seems rather rare for such a thing in the world of books. So here are the trailers to two of the aforementioned novels.

Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing you all a very happy Valentine's Day, on behalf of Allen Darkley and the storytellers. Planning on paying my good friend Don a visit tonight and watching 'My Bloody Valentine', a first for both of us. Although which version we watch is another question. If there's enough time, we'll watch the original 1981 slasher and the more recent 2009 remake. I've acquired both, just for this occasion.

Taylorem and Dill: The Wicker Man (2006)

In my last review, I made a passing remark about 'The Wicker Man' 2006 remake starring Nicholas Cage. Now, it's only fair to make a disclaimer and state that I have not actually seen this film for myself. The original 1973 film with Christopher Lee, yes, but not the remake. Putting aside the reception of poor reviews from movie critics, horror fans, and personal friends alike, I was still curious and tempted to watch for myself. However, I didn't want to waste my personal time proving to myself that I would be disillusioned. I've done that once already, much to my regret, by spending an afternoon watching all 'The Children of the Corn' sequels... I want those stolen hours of my life back. So, the solution? "Taylorem & Dill at the Movies" review of 'The Wicker Man' ('06). Whether you have or have not seen the film, I recommend their review for laughs.

Annnnd, just for further amusement...

triple haunted feature: The Echo, The Uninvited, and The Dark

Afraid I'm falling behind on the film reviews, no pun intended. More recently Don, friend and Darkley comic co-conspirator, and myself have splurged on the movie rentals in the past few weeks. So to help catch up, the Niche presents a special feature reviewing three movies about hauntings. Actually, one of these is not a haunting, but I'll let you learn for yourselves which it is. We'll keep the synopses shorter and leave out the important spoilers, so have at it.

An American remake of Fillipino horror film 'Sigaw' (which neither of us have seen and only learned that it was a remake after the fact), 'The Echo' follows recently released ex-con Bobby Reynolds (Jesse Bradford) who moves into the apartment of his late mother. The circumstances surrounding his mother's death are vague and appears to have gone senile, shutting herself up in the apartment in the remaining weeks of her life. The apartment building supervisor, having replaced the prior super not so long ago, is less than helpful on the details. Bobby is left to find unsettling pieces of the puzzle: piano keys stained with blood and whole fingernails inside the piano itself, a closet with cans of cat food and locks on the inside, and a hole in the wall caused by some sort of hard impact, just to name a few.

To make matters worse, Bobby is put in a precarious predicament by the evidence of abuse going on next door, which only he seems to take notice of. Several times the victimized mother (Iza Calzado) and daughter (Jamie Bloch, 'Diary of the Dead') reach out to Bobby, each in their own way. But when it's the word of an ex-con against a police officer (Kevin Durand), and a rather large man at that, who menacingly tells Bobby to mind his own business, who would they believe? However, it's not long after that we learn the apartment next door is abandoned and that there is no family. At least no living family. Following the pattern of horror films like 'Ju-on', the spirits of 'The Echo' are trapped in a violent cycle that extends its reach to any who make contact, apparently those who visit or live on that particular floor. Oh, and there's also an old girlfriend (Amelia Warner, 'Nine Lives') that gets caught up in this mess, but who really cares, right?

While maintaining an ominous atmosphere and some legitimately creepy elements, there is relatively little that 'The Echo' offers that makes it original from other American remakes or the Asian horror films that they're based on. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad movie by any means, just average. I give it three out of five blood-stained piano keys.

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While the title of 'The Uninvited' (2009) would lead you to presume that it's referring to a haunting spirit or such, it's actually a flesh and blood woman. Meet Anna Ivers (Emily Browning, 'Ghost Ship'), a teenage girl recovering from the traumatic death of her mother, which lead to her stay and rehabilitation in a mental institution. Anna has reoccurring nightmares of the night her mother died in the boat house from an unexplained fire, but has blocked out the incident from her conscious memories. Having worked through a suicidal phase, Anna's psychiatrist deems her ready to go home and in parting says, in the hopes that her memories will gradually return, "finish what you started".

But as they say, you can never go home. Anna returns with her father (David Strathairn) to their seaside house, but it is not the home that she left before. Anna's sister, Alex (Arielle Kebbel, 'Freakdog'/'Red Mist') is resentful, initially, of her sister leaving and has developed a bit of a drinking problem. Aside from Anna's absence and their mother's death, what has driven Alex to further drinking is Rachel Summers (Elizabeth Banks, 'Slither'), their mother's former nurse and stepmother-to-be. It's apparent at this point that Rachel is the "uninvited" person in the house. Hoping to make a good impression on Anna, Rachel puts on a friendly, if somewhat pushy, facade for the girl.

But when the frightful apparition of Anna's mother (Maya Massar) starts appearing to her, making accusation of murder in a manner almost reminiscent of 'Hamlet', she begins to suspect that Rachel may have had a hand in her death. Together with her sister, Anna tries to solve the mystery of Rachel Summers' past, the circumstances of the boat house fire, and three murdered children whom Anna sees in visions.

'The Uninvited', like 'The Echo', is also an American remake of an Asian horror film, South Korea's 'A Tale of Two Sisters'. And likewise, Don and myself learned this only after the fact. It does deserve credit for not feeling like a typical remake, since neither of us suspected. A decent story with a few well done twists at the end, I give it three-and-a-half out of five pearl necklaces. (It'll make sense when you watch the film.)

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Based on the novel 'Sheep' by Simon Magin (which I haven't read -- by now you've likely noticed my trend of unfamiliarity with the original sources of most films), 'The Dark' (2005) takes us to the gorgeous countryside of Wales. Visiting her estranged husband James (Sean Bean, 'Silent Hill'), Adele (Maria Bello, 'Secret Window') hopes that this time together will help bridge the gap growing between her resentful teenage daughter Sarah (Sophie Stuckey) and herself. However, all is not peaceful as the grassy pastures by the coast would appear. A stone monument inscribed with the word "Annwyn" stands erect on a cliffside, memorializing the suicides of a small congregation who fell into the sea. This is explained by Dafydd (Maurice Roëves, 'The Nightmare Man' series), an older local and friend of James', who further elaborates that Annwyn is the land of the dead in Welsh mythology.

After Sarah disappears while exploring the shore, a strange girl later appears in her place named Ebrill (Abigail Stone). As Adele unravels the mystery of Ebrill and the history of the monument she learns that the two are connected to a figure called "the Shepherd", Ebrill's father and a local pastor. Losing his daughter to illness fifty years ago, Ebrill's father (Richard Elfyn) convinced his congregation to commit mass suicide as a path to Paradise. Believing the Welsh legends, he lied and sacrificed them to bring Ebrill back from the underworld. She did return, however she brought an evil over with her. Attempting to bleed out the darkness with trepanning, this backfired and led to his untimely death. Afterward, Ebrill went to the sea, back to Annwyn, but has come back after all these years for what she wished most for: a loving father. Eventually this leads up to a climatic conclusion as Adele crosses over with Ebrill into Annwyn to bring her daughter back.

While the plot unfortunately starts to fall apart towards the end, the concepts of the story itself were quite good. And the cinematography was absolutely beautiful, no question of that. If I may be so bold to compare films, 'The Dark' reminds me slightly of 'The Wicker Man' (1973, not the 2006 perversion) and 'Silent Hill', appropriate since Sean Bean starred in the latter. After weighing the pros and cons, I have to give it three out of five ghost sheep.

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~movie trailers~