My favourite scene from the 1973 film The Wicker Man. Love everything about this. As its May 1st, a revisiting is definitely in order.
Category Archives: Uncategorized
New Review
My review of The ABCs of Death is now live on AllHorror.net
Would be awesome if people could check that out, plus the other quality reviews, news and audio shows over there.
Podcast Example
OK, so during January myself and Hayley (of Hayley’s Horror Reviews) sat down to have a conversation about our favourite subject – horror. Now, due to my technical incompetence some of this has been lost, but as just a little example of the kind of stuff we did (and will be doing in the future) here is a link to a 15 minute clip from our recording session.
I apologise in advance for potentially dodgy edits and also be warned that it is pretty spoiler heavy for The Woman in Black (new version). Hope you enjoy! If you do, or don’t, please don’t hesitate to get in touch and let us know.
Musing on Mama
I really wanted to put an extra little sub-heading on that to say, ‘and other mainstream horror’ but that would have messed up my alliteration and also, this theme tends to do weird things to punctuation that alarms and confuses me, so yeah, I hope you like the title if nothing else….
Apart from Abertoir Horror Festival, I very rarely see horror films in the cinema meaning that I kind of miss out on a lot of mainstream horror until I see it when it comes out for rental. Of course, thanks to my local Blockbuster shutting down (much sadness for this) I will likely see even less. To be honest, I’m not all that bothered by missing out on it. While I like to see the sorts of films coming out and look at them in terms of trends, etc, the majority leave a lot to be desired. The last mainstream horror I saw was Mama, which judging by its continued presence in the UK box office top ten (currently at number 7 as of the time of writing) is doing pretty well in terms of bums in seats. I have to be honest and admit I haven’t read many reviews on it so I don’t know how much others have enjoyed it. For me, it was almost everything I hated, despite having some great restrained scares and even some pretty good noisy ones. I always jump at horrors, because I jump at loud noises. Very few leave me actually frightened afterwards and Mama was no exception, owing largely to heavy CGI effects allowing the titular character to be seen up close too often and for far too long. Don’t even get me started on the whole ‘a mother’s love’ text within it because one: it’ll head very swiftly into spoiler territory and two: I can’t roll my eyes that much this time of night.
Part of the allure of Mama is likely to be the banner of ‘Guillermo Del Toro Presents’. While a good tool for the promotion of new writers and directors that perhaps otherwise wouldn’t get such a big opportunity to show their film in multiplexes and is certainly an easy way for such directors to be constantly relevant I’m not sure how much it actually detracts from the film by putting fans of that director into the mind set that they are about to see a film that is equal in quality. I often wonder if the banner of first time director/writer would mean these films would be more appreciated than something essentially being compared to far more experienced and in many cases, beloved directors.
To avoid this piece being completely anti-mainstream horror (because let’s face it, there’s plenty of nonsense on the independent scene too) I’d like to throw in my two pennies on the Evil Dead reboot. Yes, I’m quite late in offering any opinion on it, but having seen the trailer before Mama and read a script (although pretty sure it isn’t a legitimate one) I’m actually far more interested in it. It looks like I’ll have the same complaint of it being the same colour as every horror remake/reboot/regurgitation but that’s just a personal dislike I’m going to have to get over. From what I’ve seen/read it is a very different film that gives the characters a valid reason to be in a cabin in the middle of nowhere beyond wanting to get high and fuck and that’s far more interesting than that bog standard tale. It also looks pretty damn gory and has managed to achieve the elusive R rating for US audiences. The constant rating of horrors as PG-13 has turned a lot of people off, so perhaps the ultra-gross-out nature of Evil Dead, if a success, may bring forward a new set of films following suit. Even if it’s not so good…at least it’s a little different and sometimes, that’s all you can hope for.
If you’ve made it all the way through this ramble, I salute you and I’ll see you at the end of the next one. As always, you can contact me on Twitter – @caitlynmdowns
The Killing of Jacob Marr
The Killing of Jacob Marr (2010)
Director/Writer: Brad Rego
Starring: Morgan White & Brandon Beilis
The Killing of Jacob Marr revolves around a group of friends heading to a rented cabin. Despite the construction issues the new owner has had, group leader Ted (Morgan White) is assured that everything will be perfect upon his arrival. However, when the group arrive there is food in the cupboards and toiletries in the bathroom, despite the fact that there is no one in the cabin. The group consider the gesture to be an apology for the delays in construction but there is something far more sinister at work.
Lately I’ve been sort of concerned about the amount of independent horror coming out declaring itself to be low-budget above all other possible selling points, largely because it sounds, to me, like an excuse for anything lacking within the film. I understand that working with a low budget is appealing to many, but often this comes (rather ironically) at a cost – be that a lack of acting talent, poor production values or lazy scripting that is often hand-waved as a consequence of having less money than big studios. Of course, big studios too have been responsible for some real turkeys and they’re the ones throwing huge money around, so clearly money isn’t the answer to everything. So, while this may appear to be a totally unrelated complaint I’m really just stating that when confronted with a screener stating its budget status I don’t expect much and The Killing of Jacob Marr has made me think that I should perhaps not be so damning of everything choosing to carry that label.
Yes, the premise is an all-too-familiar one, although I have omitted some of the content in my plot description because I’m always concerned about giving too much away about a film’s plot so it is a little more unique than it may seem at first glance. The acting is nothing too special, but solid enough that it doesn’t become too much of an issue. The dynamic between Ted (Morgan White), Dan (Brandon Beilis) and Claire (Alyssa Mann) is a fun one, helped along by an often witty and involving script. There is some character development along the way without taking up too much time or detracting from the main plot. Some of it – like Ted’s ill-fated crush on Claire feels clichéd and maybe a bit tacked on but is forgivable by being essentially an afterthought – mentioned once, then left with little further pining after her. Dan is possibly my favourite of the characters with his dislike of friend Doug’s (Chris Keating) girlfriend Ellie (Elizabeth Drake) gradually giving way to a realisation that they both want the same thing and is ably played by Brandon Beilis.
Despite a few moments of gore it is a relatively restrained film, exchanging ‘jumps’ and scare chords for far more quiet and eerie options, making it all the more effective. The film is somewhat self-aware with its characters able to name horror characters and tropes but holds back on becoming a reference-fest. What is really refreshing about it however, is the characters don’t do anything that could be described as painfully stupid and this makes the scenario all the more unsettling. After all, if you have characters making silly decisions (as honestly, all horror relies on) then it becomes very easy to work up a high body count and get the blood flowing, but when you have people making fairly rational decisions and that danger STILL finds them? THAT is far more effective and interesting.
Overall, it is a decent enough film that, while not all that original uses some interesting techniques in its story-telling to separate itself from the many other independent horrors out there. While it won’t change anyone’s world, it is a fun enough time to spend an hour and a half or so and I can safely say I enjoyed it.
The Shadow of Death
The Shadow of Death (2011)
Director/Writer: Gav Chuckie Steel
Starring: Dan Bone & Sophia Disgrace
Independent film-making is becoming more commonplace and certainly achieving a wider audience through the use of Twitter (other social networks are available). The funding isn’t there right now for determined small-time directors, but the interest from film fans certainly is. Perhaps the most important thing for independent film is to know and find its audience. Director Gav Chuckie Steel has produced a film that will please an audience wanting a stoner slasher with some good practical special effects thrown in with humdrum name-checking of films close to the director’s heart. It’s a film to be watched with beer (or other substances if you’re so inclined) but it left me cold and at times, annoyed.
The film follows Debra (Corinna Jane), Jamie (Jane West), Nancy (Sophia Disgrace) and Dan (Daniel Carter-Hope) who go into the English countryside in search of Dan’s dealer. They are soon lost and begin sharing urban legends in a small remote cabin, but a killer is on the loose. Their only hope for survival is that hapless, fake policeman Craven (Dan Bone) finds them before the killer does.
My main problem with the film is that it feels jumbled – introducing people at random within the forest to be bumped off and never referred to again. While this seems to be a device for showing off some well-crafted effects for rather inventive deaths, it does disjoint the film as these things have no relevance on the rest of the plot. Now, this can be said for other slasher films, although many are at least a part of the main cast and have more than a twenty second introduction before being done away with. It leaves the film looking unfinished, unpolished and more like a show reel than a film for audience enjoyment.
The other major flaw I found with the film was the character of Dan, whose constant use of the slur ‘lesbo’ as an insult to another character was annoying, unnecessary and at times, uncomfortable. I suspect (and hope) that this was used to make him irritating and unlikeable because frankly I was gritting my teeth the whole time he was on-screen. If he was meant to provoke that sort of reaction, then mission accomplished. Dan Bone does a bizarre Nick Frost in Hot Fuzz impersonation throughout as idiot policeman wannabe Craven, although never reaches the comic standard of the man he is trying to copy. The performances were passable, helped along by their shared dedication to Steel’s vision.
These complaints do not mean that there is nothing worth seeing in The Shadow of Death however, as a segment in which one character relays her dream to the others is dripping in tension and suspense. It teases the possibility of Steel perhaps turning his hand to a story relying less on gore and often lazy references to past horror films (not that there’s anything inherently wrong with that) to one concerning more psychological scares.
The film’s sound design and music is good, particularly in scenes where characters are walking over leaves in the forest and every satisfying crunch can be heard. This is a nice surprise, as in low budget films, the sound design is one of the first elements to suffer. Before turning his hand to directing, Steel composed music for other films and his expertise in this area shines through with a noticeable and enjoyable, but not intrusive soundtrack. The photography makes the most of the location, swirling through trees and creating some interesting images.
In closing, while The Shadow of Death did not do much for me, it will find an audience that really enjoys and ‘gets’ what the director set out to do. I get the feeling that the director made the sort of film that he and his friends would enjoy and while that is certainly not a problem, it certainly limits the audience for it.
Horror and Gender
I’m working on a blog for February relating to the expectations for males and females within the horror industry. The Storify link is the Twitter conversation that really sparked this interest for me. I’m also looking for experiences from those involved in the industry in hopes of putting together a fairly in-depth look at the subject.
Abertoir 2012: The Vlogs (Day One-Three)
Its been over a fortnight since the Abertoir Horror Festival celebrated its seventh horrific year, providing fans with the best in new and classic genre films as well as live events. In this piece I would like to showcase the video coverage I did alongside Caitlyn Downs (http://scaredsheepless.com) during the festival, including an interview with horror and gothic author Gavin Baddeley and a brief written, non-spoiler summary of my personal highlights from the festival.
Videos and extra written bits from Hayley - enjoy!
Final Video from Abertoir 2012
A quick summary and a final goodbye from Abertoir 2012.
Interview with Gavin Baddeley
Hayley caught up with Gavin Baddeley following his talk on what makes a horror film a horror film.
