Celluloid Diaries: March 2015

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

BIFFF: Chatting with Joe Dante and other filmmakers

I'll be hosting several Q&A sessions with filmmakers at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF) in April. Below are the films I'll be talking about.

burying the ex
burying the ex

Burying The Ex 


On April 7, at the openings night of BIFFF, I'll be hosting a Q&A with American director Joe Dante (Gremlins, Piranha). We'll be addressing Dante's entire career, but the focus will be on his latest horror comedy, Burying The Ex, in which a bitchy girl crawls out of the grave to stalk her ex-boyfriend. 

german angst
german angst

German Angst 


No one knows how to transgress the boundaries of gore like Germans. If you've ever seen films by Jörg Buttgereit (Nekromantik), Olaf Ittenbach (Premutos – Der gefalenne engel), Andreas Schnaas (Violent Shit), and Andreas Marshall (Tears Of Kali), you know what I mean. Three of those German filmmakers – Buttgereit, Kosakowski and Marshall – collaborated to bring us a tryptic of stomach-churning stories. After the screening of German Angst, on April 14, I'll be chatting with Michael Kosakowski and Andreas Marshall about their respective stories. 

stung horror movie
stung

Stung 


On April 18, I'll be hosting a Q&A with actor Daniele Rizzo, sound designer Tilman Hahn, and sound editor Emil Klotzsch (sound editor) on Stung, a hilarious horror comedy about wasps intruding on a chic garden party. The wasps return meaner and bigger when treated with chemicals.

goodnight mommy
goodnight mommy

Goodnight Mommy 


Later that evening, you can also go to a Q&A with directors Severin Fiala and Veronic Franz where we'll discuss their new movie Goodnight Mommy. This unsettling story about a mother who returns from hospital with her head covered in bandages and starts mistreating her identical twin kids, has created a buzz at the latest Sitges Film Festival, especially regarding the twist ending. By the way, Veronic Franz was also the screenwriter for Ulrich Seidl's Paradise Trilogy

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Reading / watching / listening to...

john cleese so anyway

Reading: 

* So, Anyway by John Cleese. I'm a big fan of John Cleese, especially of his work on Fawlty Towers, but his autobiography wasn't what I expected it to be. The main focus is on Cleese's childhood, college years, and early work in theatre. Sometimes he touches interesting parts - such as his survival techniques as a teacher, his reveries about how life could have been easier if he'd become a lawyer or a banker, and his complicated relationship with Connie Booth – but he always returns to the bare facts and most of those aren't very absorbing. He rarely mentions Fawlty Towers and his movies, and only addresses Monty Python in the last chapter as if his editor obliged him to put it in after the book was already written.

* Billson Film Database: Short Reviews Of Over 4000 Films. If you enjoy reading the capsule reviews on my blog, then there's no reason you won't enjoy Anne Billson's collection of movie reviews, all of which have been previously published in The Telegraph and other publications. It's not the kind of book to read in one go, more something to leaf through whenever you're looking for a movie to watch. The author covers every genre, every era, every taste, and does so with both knowledge and humor. It's an inspiring read that will make you want to sit down and (re-)discover films all day long. Fun fact: being a cat lover, Anne Billson makes a special mention of movies with kitties. 

* Globule: Une vie de lapin by Mamemoyashi. Since I have just welcomed a rabbit to the family, my boyfriend now buys me rabbit mangas on top of cat mangas. Globule: Une vie de lapin is the true story of author Mamemoyashi and her rabbit Globule. Books like this have to be recognizable, and Globule: Une vie de lapin definitely is. It's impossible not to recognize your rabbit's special quirks, positions, and behaviors. Gift this book to someone who owns a rabbit, and they will be eternally grateful. 


Watching: 

* The Slayer. It's funny how opinions change depending on when and where you watch a movie. The first time I saw The Slayer, I felt ripped of. Nothing happened in the story, and when the monster finally arrived, he was gone in a matter of seconds. I just saw it again after fifteen years, and I was surprised to discover several efficient murder scenes, some great beach locations, and an addictive vintage atmosphere. It's not as boring as I thought it was. Don't get me wrong. We're far from a horror masterpiece here, but if you're into the eighties slasher genre, The Slayer is actually enjoyable. Just do yourself a favor and skip the last two minutes of the film. 

* Dogs. In a sleepy American town, all the dogs band together to hunt down their former masters. This results in several memorable scenes (such as the canines at a dog show going wild), but, overall, the story is too slow, and definitely not scary or suspenseful. 

* Before I Go To Sleep. I almost forgot to add this one to the list. That's how forgettable Before I Go To Sleep is. Based on the bestselling book by S.J. Watson, Before I Go To Sleep follows a woman (Nicole Kidman) who, after a traumatic incident, can't remember her past, including her husband. Not one second of it is believable, definitely not the so-called twist ending that you can guess just by reading this review. A big miss. 

* Daughter Of Darkness. The first thing that struck me about Stuart Gordon's Daughter Of Darkness was how reminiscent its design was to Roger Corman's The Pit and the Pendulum. Then it dawned on me that Gordon actually remade The Pit and the Pendulum one year after releasing Daughter Of Darkness. It's the atmosphere, as well as the seedy Romanian locations, that make this nineties horror movie worthwhile. On the other hand, the story about the girl (Mia Sara) who goes looking for her lost father (Anthony Perkins) and encounters a clan of vampires, is wooden and silly. 

* Slaughter High. Nothing is plausible in this eighties slasher movie about a nerd who seeks revenge for a prank gone wrong. Should the viewer think it's normal that a girl takes a bath in a closed-down high school after several of her friends have been murdered? Or that the killer is able to put poison in a closed beer can? Or that there's a bed with clean sheets in an abandoned building? Or that the former school janitor is still doing rounds at night? But no matter how silly it gets, I've watched Slaughter High numerous times before and it still stands as one of the coolest slasher movies in film history. It's fast, it's fun, it's gory, and it's great. Strange fact: Simon Scuddamore, who played the nerdy Marty, committed suicide even before Slaughter High was officially released. 

* Birdman. I still think Whiplash should have won the Oscar for best movie, but I certainly enjoyed Birdman. As a writer, I could identify with the idea of being more true to yourself in your art than in real life, and that when you try to please an audience you end up being invisible. I could also go on for hours about the double meaning of the dialogue, the symbolic undertones, the technical stunts, etc. It's a smart film, the kind that has so many undertones you can discover new things with each additional viewing. 

* The Theory Of Everything. Eddie Redmayne, who won the Oscar for his performance, is convincing as Stephen Hawking in this biopic based on Jane Hawking's second memoir Travelling To Infinity. The Theory Of Everything is a cute film, but too sweet and inoffensive. Surely, Hawking accomplished great things despite his disease, but the film was oddly lacking a sense of struggle and inner torment which would have made it so much more interesting and real. 

* Still Alice. I've always mistakenly assumed that people with Alzheimer's aren't aware of their fate and therefor never really suffered. Thanks to Still Alice, I now have a more realistic understanding of the disease. Based on a novel by neuroscientist Lisa Genova, the film shows the degenerative process from the victim's p.o.v. We are confronted with her feelings of being misunderstood as her husband denies her initial diagnosis, with her shame as she realizes she is no longer the intelligent and articulate woman she once was, with her sense of being lost when she can't even find her way to her own toilet, and with her fear of what the future has in store. I shed more than a few tears with Still Alice, but, most of all, it has turned me into a more considerate person regarding those who are suffering from the disease.


Listening to: 

* It Follows (original motion picture soundtrack) by Disasterpeace. This indie game music composer, known for Fez, manages to reproduce the vintage synthesizer sound of the eighties. Just like the movie, there's a strong Carpenter vibe to it. 

* Lost Themes by John Carpenter. The title is misleading, because all the tracks are new. Made in collaboration with his son Cody, the album is in the same vein as Carpenter's earlier work.


What are you currently reading, watching, and listening to? Anything here that piques your interest? 


You can take a peek at all the other books, movies, and music I've blogged about under the "reading / watching / listening to..." tag.

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Offscreen 2015: Mushroom people, Cannon films, and Tobe Hooper

During the next three weeks, I will introduce several movies at the Offscreen Film Festival in Brussels. 

Apart from a selection of premieres, Offscreen will showcase a retrospective on Tobe Hooper, a module on botanicals, and some of the most popular Cannon Films. 

I made an overview of the films I'll be talking about. I hope you'll come by if you have the chance. 

the duke of burgundy
The Duke Of Burgundy

The Duke Of Burgundy 

Those of you who saw Peter Strickland's Berberian Sound Studio at Offscreen 2013, know that they're in for a visual and auditory treat with The Duke Of Burgundy (2014). Together with director Peter Strickland, I will introduce The Duke Of Burgundy on March 6 at 8 pm in the Cinema Nova in Brussels. 

matango
matango

Matango: Attack Of The Mushroom People

After the screening of The Duke Of Burgundy, at 10 pm, I will also introduce Ishiro Honda's Japanese cult classic Matango: Attack Of The Mushroom People (1963), this time in the company of Jasper Sharp (author of the 'slime molds' book The Creeping Garden and director of the documentary by the same name). This story about castaways who turn into mushrooms after having eaten weird fungi has rarely been screened outside of Japan, so don't miss this opportunity.  

Eaten Alive
Eaten Alive

Eaten Alive 

Deep in the Louisiana bayou, travelers find shelter in the dilapidated Starlight Hotel. They never stay long, since the psychotic owner feeds them one by one to his pet alligator. Director Tobe Hooper will join me for the introduction of Eaten Alive (1977) on March 8 at 9:30 pm at Cinematek. 

Salem's Lot
Salem's Lot

Salem's Lot 

I'm proud to present one of my favorite horror movies, Salem's Lot (1979), at the Offscreen Film Festival. Based on the novel by Stephen King, Salem's Lot was first released as a TV mini series before receiving the theatrical cut that will be shown at Offscreen. Don't forget to mark your calendars: March 12 at 9:30 pm (at Cinematek). But be warned: Salem's Lot contains some of the creepiest scenes in vampire movie history. 

street smart
christopher reeve in street smart

Street Smart

On Saturday, March 13th, I'll be introducing the 1987 movie Street Smart at Cinematek. Part of Offscreen's Cannon module, Street Smart was originally an initiative from actor Christopher Reeve. After much insisting, he could convince Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus to finance the film, but he had to agree to star in Superman 4 in return. Yet it was not Christopher Reeve but Morgan Freeman who reaped the biggest success as his career got a big boost thanks to his nominations as best supporting actor for the Academy Awards and the Golden Globes. 

invaders from mars
invaders from mars

Invaders From Mars

Invaders From Mars (1986) is the second of the three movies Tobe Hooper shot back-to-back for Cannon. It's the remake from Invaders From Mars from 1953 in which a boy discovers that his parents, and possibly the entire village, has been taken by aliens. I will give an introduction to this movie on Sunday, March 15, at 10 pm at Cinematek. 

avenging force
avenging force

Avenging Force 

On Wednesday, March 18, I'll be introducing Avenging Force from director Sam Firstenberg (Ninja III: The Domination) at Cinematek. It's about a paramilitary group that organizes hunts on human prey. Yet it wasn't an original topic when the film was released. We already had The Most Dangerous Game in 1932 and Turkey Shoot (aka Escape 2000) in 1982. 

andrew stevens charles bronson
10 to midnight

10 To Midnight 

Also on March 18, I'll be introducing 10 To Midnight (1983). Charles Bronson headlines as the police detective who chases a serial killer who strips his clothes before chasing and killing his victims. In the supporting roles, you'll recognize Andrew Stevens (The Fury, The Seduction) and Geoffrey Lewis (Salem's Lot). Roger Ebert called 10 To Midnight “a scummy little sewer of a movie.” Don't say I didn't warn you. 

the mangler
the mangler

The Mangler

Tobe Hooper based The Mangler (1995) on Stephen King's short story about a demon-possessed ironing machine in an industrial laundry. It was supposed to be part of the anthology film The Machines in which King's stories Trucks, The Lawmower Man, and The Mangler would be adapted. The death of the producer made sure that didn't happen. Despite Hooper-King-Englund combination, The Mangler was a flop. Yet, two sequels were made: The Mangler 2 (2001), which had nothing more to do with a mangler but with a computer virus that kills people, and The Return Of The Mangler (2005), which re-introduced the evil ironing machine. King wrote about the film: “Tobe Hooper is a genius. But when genius goes wrong, brother, watch out...” I'll be introducing The Mangler on Sunday, March 22 at Cinematek.  

Which movies would you like to see? Anything you've seen that you'd recommend?