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Reviews
Broken (2006)
Cruel and Unusual
I saw this film at this year's Dead by Dawn festival in Edinburgh.
You know the way you can watch a trailer, get excited by what you've seen and then be ultimately disappointed when you realise that the best bits were in that trailer? Well every so often a film comes along that bucks that trend and you realise what you have already seen was just a taste.
'Broken' is such a film.
The pace from the start is admirable, we know that a mother loves her daughter, so we're spared interminable scenes showing this. The main character is put in her predicament and we know just as much as she does (nothing). We have to found out information as she does. The film descends into mental one-upsmanship as cat and mouse struggle to get the upper hand.
For those weak stomached viewers... beware. This is a film that doesn't shy away from violence and its effects.. or showing them. People will do desperate and uncharacteristic things in the name of survival and when confronted by a cruel enemy, especially when a child is at stake. The escalating violence mirrors this desperation.
Not a film for everyone but an excellent one for those who enjoy quality genre cinema. Which let's face it, is becoming more and more rare.
9/10 James
Oculus: Chapter 3 - The Man with the Plan (2006)
Excellent short film
Saw this at the Dead by Dawn film festival in Edinburgh and it was the best short film screened there this year in my opinion.
Essentially this is a one man show with Scott Graham alone with an evil mirror for much of the running time. While this doesn't sound particularly exciting, this growing feeling of paranoia and the increasing madness of the lone character propel the story.
Keep an eye on the video monitors that have been set up for the experiment, it's a small but very creepy touch.
Oculus is part 3 of a 9 part story. If Mike Flanagan can keep up this level of invention then I look forward to further entries.
Shallow Ground (2004)
Absolutely Outstanding!!
The Dead by Dawn film festival just had the world premiere screening and going into it I was hoping for a decent film to pass the time while waiting for better ones... what I got was the film of the festival.
Good performances, a script that keeps you on your toes, a creeping feeling of dread throughout and an excellent musical score.
From the opening scenes of the boy covered in blood walking through the woods through to its blood soaked finale Writer/Director Sheldon Wilson has created an original and intelligent genre film that doesn't pander to the lowest common denominator
I hope this film gets the distribution it deserves and doesn't just appear without fanfare on a video shelf. This is not a typical Hollywood horror but deserves the chance to be seen on a big screen.
Faust: Love of the Damned (2000)
Loud, fast paced and hedonistic .
Brian Yuzna has given us a loud, fast paced and hedonistic movie that is comparable to the comic book. Andrew Divoff, as always, performs his quiet menacing role very well. Jeffrey Combs looked set to get a fairly straight role until the film climactic battle. The effects for the most part are excellent, the only exception being a large creature effect near the end of the movie.
I really enjoyed this movie and it left me really looking forward to 'Beyond Re-Animator'. 8/10
Los sin nombre (1999)
So glad it ended.
What can I say? It was the first film in a long time that I was glad to finally see end. The last twenty minutes instilled a feeling of dread that I couldn't get rid off. I say this as a father of two and so the storyline really hit me hard. But I have spoken to other people without children that weren't so affected by the film.
Based on a Ramsey Campbell novel that I haven't read (but will now be rectified) the film has an atmosphere of hopelessness that runs through each character. If you enjoyed the original "The Vanishing" and "Dont Look Now", then I think you will get a lot out of this.
10/10
The Attic Expeditions (2001)
A Very Stylish Movie
A very stylish movie that takes a lot of themes and meshes them with some success. First time director Kasten shows that he is someone to watch in the future. The performances are generally good especially Jeffrey Combs & Seth Green.
I would like to see this movie again, just for the fact that I saw it as part of an all night film fest, and my brain wasn't functioning properly. I have the feeling that I might have missed some of the subtle points in the movie. But however, it kept my attention for the whole running time.
8/10