I have finally completed the Re-watching Alias Project. You can stop after Season 3. Trust me.
Until the Light Takes Us: 2009 documentary about Norwegian black metal, focuses on the rash of church burnings and murders in the ‘90s that have been associated with the genre. I vaguely remember hearing something about this, but I really had no idea. Even though I’m a big fan of Metalocalypse. The main interviews are with Gylve “Fenriz” Nagell and Varg “Count Grishnackh” Vikernes. I mean, they both talk about feeling dissatisfied with McDonald’s coming to Norway bla bla bla which could be a justification for the music, but not murder. You know. But it was good. And is making me rethink dudes with long hair.
Shoot ‘Em Up: 2007 Michael Davis action movie with Clive Owen, Paul Giamatti, and Monica Bellucci. Movies like this are only good when they take themselves way too seriously. Think Roadhouse. This movie tried to be funny, so it wasn’t funny. And the carrot thing got old fast. I wanted to like this because on paper it seemed like I should: shitty action movie + three actors I really like. But yeah, you should skip it.
Igby Goes Down: 2002 Burr Steers dramedy with Kieran Culkin (heart), Claire Danes, Jeff Goldblum, and Susan Sarandon. It was pretty good. The music was excellent. Goldblum and Sarandon were fantastic, not that that should surprise you.
The Boston Strangler: 1968 Richard Fleischer thriller with Tony Curtis, Henry Fonda, and George Kennedy. Oh, really? NO ONE in Boston has an accent?
Good things: the split screen effects were interesting, and what they chose not to show kept up the level of suspense. We don’t see Albert DeSalvo (Tony Curtis) until an hour into the movie. Before that he’s just a menacing pair of gloves or a dark shadow. In the beginning we see just enough of the bodies (nearly nothing) so that it’s scary without being gruesome; then it builds to show more of the attacks. I thought that was very effective.
Bad things: Not even close to accurate. And if you’re going to make a movie like this based on real events, it should be as accurate as possible. I think doing less is a disservice. Zodiac is still the gold standard.
Insomnia: 1997 Erik Skjoldbjaerg Norwegian thriller with Stellan Skarsgard, Gisken Armand, Maria Bonnevie, and Bjorn Floberg. Stellan was very good, as usual. But it was sooooo predictable. Too predictable. I may watch the American remake just to see how it stacks up.
The Secret of Kells: 2009 animated movie with Brendan Gleeson, Evan McGuire, and Christen Mooney. The animation (by hand!) was beautiful, the accents are delightful, it almost makes me want a cat, it’s short, and it’s cute but not twee.
The Manson Family: 2003 Jim Van Bebber. When I borrowed this from my friend Louis he said, “Keep in mind that this was filmed over 30 years.” I thought he meant that it covered a 30-year period of time. No. They started making it in the 80s, and it wasn’t released until 2003. Which might explain some of its disjointedness.
Watching this made me want to reread Helter Skelter, and also made me really glad I never did acid. The acting quality is all over the place; some excellent, some awful. Not for the weak-stomached. The most interesting scenes were the portions filmed like interviews. The Tate murder scene is powerful weak. There’s an interview with Manson on the bonus disc that’s worth watching. On the whole, I’m torn.
The Ruling Class: 1972 Peter Medak British comedy with Peter O’Toole, Alastair Sim, Coral Browne, and Carolyn Seymour. So bizarre. O’Toole’s character has just inherited a peerage, and also thinks he’s Jesus Christ. Through his family’s efforts to cure him and/or take his inheritance from him he comes to believe that he’s Jack the Ripper instead. It was weird. I liked it. Definitely not for everyone.
The Man Who Knew Too Much: 1956 Hitchcock thriller with Jimmy Stewart and Doris Day. I didn’t realize until I started researching this that it’s a remake of his 1934 film of the same name. Huh. I’ll have to look that one up, I do like Peter Lorre. The acting is good all around, and I was especially impressed by Day. It was a bit too long and there were a lot of loose ends, but overall it was decent.
The Trouble with Harry: 1955 Hitchcock dark comedy with Shirley MacLaine, Edmund Gwenn, and John Forsythe. A group of adorable New Englanders finds a body in the woods; hijinks ensue. Cute but underwhelming.
The Hudsucker Proxy: 1994 Coen Brothers comedy with Tim Robbins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Paul Newman. I’m going through a bit of a Coen Brothers thing, since I realized I haven’t seen all of them. Believe I’ll skip The Ladykillers. JJL does an annoying Hepburn impression. This was all right. I prefer their dramas.
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