Posts Tagged ‘prom’

  • 05 Apr

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    Trailer: Carrie redux

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    While Chloe Moretz and Julianne more lack the flat out ‘otherliness’ of Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie, the Carrie remake (of Depalma’s 1976 classic) seems to be sticking true to the beats of the original tale while bringing us into the 21st century where cellphones and cyber bullying co-exist with psychical humiliation, and studio cinema has a way of putting ridiculously attractive collection of twentysomethings all in the same highschool. How will a rampage of butchery and revenge by loners and daughter of a zealous religious nutter be taken in our ‘school shooting every couple of months’ world? I predict the film will be good, perhaps too safe for its own good, but not great – and very likely completely ignored by the general public. Your mileage may vary. The trailer is below. It uses a creepy remix of the classic Shirelles song to great effect and it is great to know that head-bashing as a trailer cutting rhythm works quite well here as well, albeit note quite at the level of the masterpiece trailer for A Serious Man.

  • 15 Sep

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    TIFF 09 Review: The Loved Ones

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    Director: Sean Byrne
    Producers: Michael Boughen, Mark Lazarus
    Starring: Xavier Samuel, Robin McLeavy, Victoria Thaine, Richard Wilson, Jessica McNamee
    MPAA Rating: R
    Running time: 84 min.

    (4.5/5)

     

    This, I’m told, is why the midnight madness program exists. You will be hard pressed in 2009 to find a more fun experience in the cinema than at a jazzed up crowd in a theater screening The Loved Ones. Part Misery, part Texas Chainsaw Massacre, part Carrie part Prom Night and even a little bit of Motel Hell thrown in for good measure are all of the ingredients needed for a fantastic horror spectacle that combines action, suspense, thrills and laughter. Of course to mix the ingredients together to get the recipe to come out right you need skilled film makers and a capable set of cast members. At a near Sam Raimi/David Lynch level of vision and charisma, director Sean Bynre and his crew have put together a stunning spectacle that will have everyone howling in their seats – either from revulsion, laughter or amazement… or a beautiful combination of all three.
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  • 25 Aug

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    Racism: Alive and Well

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    The Order of Myths Movie Still

    When I saw The Order of Myths earlier this year, I was surprised to find that such a public display of race division was still alive and accepted in the US. It’s not to say that I live in an ideal world where racism doesn’t exist but it’s usually a topic that hides behind closed doors, which people discuss in hushed whispers and (mostly) deny in public.

    Margaret Brown’s documentary about Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama was an eye opener. A celebration that predates the much more popular one in New Orleans’, things in Mobile are done a little differently with not one but two Mardi Gras parades and celebrations: one for the whites and one for African Americans. Though the individuals live, work and play together when it comes to celebrating Fat Tuesday, celebrations are segregated. There are two parades, two dances and two sets of Kings and Queens of Mardi Gras.

    Brown’s documentary is a fascinating watch and though she is given access to the various groups involved in with the floats and organizing of events on both sides, no one really has an answer to why the celebration is still separate. The common answer is always “tradition” or “that’s how it’s always been done” but it makes you wonder why few people ask “When is enough enough? When do you fore go tradition?” And though Brown attempts to get some answers, she leaves the film open ended and rarely does racism rear its head although it’s always in the back of the mind and in full display on screen.

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