The Brain and the Body

I've seen two horror films in the last week or so. As I like to describe them, one is of the brain and the other is of the body. One traces the gradual decline of a single individual as he gets deeper and deeper into a situation he can't escape, while the other revels in more traditional horror tropes like gore and the undead. Both are impeccable crafted endeavours that never once feel like anything on screen was unintentioned. Of course, whether they differ is a gulf so wide that chalk and cheese would baulk.

Simon Killer comes from the production house that brought us the stunning directorial debut of Sean Durkin, Martha Marcy May Marlene in 2011. Director and co-writer Antonio Campos' unnerving, is dramatically too cool for school in many ways, Simon Killer is certainly not the film that I had expected given the rather dark title and creepy (and excellent) poster. Much more than a backpacker Parisian Psycho, it follows a young American tourist in Paris as he digs holes so deep he can't get out. First by pretending to be the recipient of a beating in order to stay at the home of an affectionate prostitute, and then by struggling to keep the darkness within him covered up.

The film's co-writer (I presume there was quite a bit of improvisation in that regard) is star Brady Corbet, one of the most interesting actors working today alone based on the list of directors he's worked with. His filmography isn't extensive, but considering he's worked with Gregg Araki (Mysterious Skin), Michael Haneke (Funny Games US), and Lars Von Trier (Melancholia) as well as the aforementioned Sean Durkin on Martha Marcy. He obviously fostered a good working relationship with the team and is now a creative force behind Simon Killer.

Make no mistake, this is purely a horror film in broad psychological terms. There's no blood and not even any thrills despite working within a thriller template. The horror of the piece is in Corbet's performance. He is so good in the role as Simon, mentally unstable and unable to contain it. With him working at such a great level, it's a shame the film didn't pick up to meet him. It's not that the film's first half doesn't work, it's just that characters routinely do things that show such poor judgement. It's hard to be reeled in. Towards the end, however, Campos appears to elevate the material thanks to more abrasive editing and a more hurried pace. Gold stars also for the use of Spectral Display's "It Takes a Muscle to Fall in Love" to such unique and unsettling effect. B-

What the psycho-chills of Simon Killer lacks in the blood and gore department are more than made up for with Xan Cassavetes' Kiss of the Damned. A film that's as super lush and stylish as it is super ridiculous and, at times, over-the-top. One could almost call it a campire tale given its propensity to be flashy and abundantly into its own colourful aesthetic. The film, Cassavetes' debut feature after her 2004 documentary Z Channel:A Magnificent Obsession, frequently looks like Sofia Coppola directing a Florence + The Machine video (and, surely not coincidentally, Coppola's name appears in the end credit thank yous) with some impeccably rich costume and production design. Shame the actors drown in them, which can make for a slower second act.

I think Jason at My New Plaid Pants put it best: "there's a lot of talk in Kiss of the Damned about the magnetic force of Milo [Ventimiglia]'s presence, and you kinda wanna laugh every time it's spoken of." Vampires are, after all, meant to be compelling creatures and lure with lust, but while Milo - as well as the parade of women that surround him all throughout the film - is a very good looking man (that beard is working all sorts of wonders for him) he doesn't exactly command the screen. The women, too, are mostly airy beings that float about through scenes, although if that was Cassavetes' intentions then at least she cast well and got actors that have some truly captivating voices.

Where the film really succeeds is is the sound work. May sound like a strange observation, but it's true. The sound work in Kiss of the Damned is phenomenal and seeing it in the theatre certainly packed a punch that home entertainment would otherwise lack. The abrupt switches in music styles mixed with copious screams, canny dialogue dubbing, and high-pitched sound effects, not to mention the deep bass that appears to be a constant within the sound mix. The work here is a genuine wonder and was one of the reasons that I remained so focused and alert during the somewhat less exciting (if more gruesome) second half. I found Kiss of the Damned to be a much more intoxicating experiment than, say, Amer, which I think some may compare it to thanks to their pastiche patterns. B

Both Simon Killer and Kiss of the Damned are available on demand in America. Simon is also in limited release now, Damned will be in cinemas from May.

Scream to Scream, Scene by Scene: SCENE 14 of Scream 3 (0:51:25-0:55:33)

In this project I attempt to review the entire Scream trilogy scene by scene in chronological order. Heavy spoilers and gore throughout!



SCENE 14 of Scream 3
Length: 4mins 8secs
Primary Characters: Sidney Prescott, Dewey Riley, Gale Weathers, Martha Meeks (Heather Matarazzo), Randy Meeks (Jamie Kennedy), and Detective Wallace.
Pop Culture References:

• The Godfather Part III and The Return of the Jedi (Used as trilogy examples)
• Reservoir Dogs (Randy describes a potential crime scene this way)

Are you ready for the worst scene in the entire franchise? Gosh, I HOPE SO!

Oh my gawd. Do you know what's behind that door? WELL DO YOU? It's something far scarier than Ghostface could ever be. And given it's daylight on a heavily populated location, the film's use of the "boo scare" reveal just makes the following character introduction ever worse. Sigh. It gives me great pains to present to you...

"Don't shoot, I'm only 17!"

MARTHA MEEKS AND THE HIDEOUS GOLD ANIMAL PRINT PANTS FROM HEEEEEELLLL!!

No, but seriously, Martha is awful, and her clothes are awful, and this scene is awful, and Heather Matarazzo is awful (in this), and Martha is awful, and her clothes are awful, and her clothes are awful, and Martha is awful.

Well, you get the picture. Literally.

Not only did they have to give Heather Matarazzo an entirely terrible character that wears entire terrible clothes and exists for entirely terrible expository reasons, but they make the actress say ludicrous rubbish dialogue like the bonmot underneath the screencap. I just can't with this scene, you guys. Every single time I watch this movie I skip it. Well, that is unless I'm screening it for somebody for the first time and they've never witnessed the shocking sights that it holds in its tight, leopard print grip. *shudder*

Well done anonymous police extras. I feel much safer knowing Heather Matarazzo can't stab me to death now that you're around. :/

"What are you doing here?"
"There's something you guys should see."

No seriously, what is she doing there and how did she get onto the lot? "I'm the real life sister of somebody portrayed in Stab" probably doesn't get a lot of gorky 17-year-olds onto film sets these days. Could she not express post the video rather than jumping out of film set trailers in retina-burning pants? SHOULDN'T SHE BE IN SCHOOL INSTEAD OF GALLIVANTING AROUND LOS ANGELES?!? "We miss you in Woodsboro," she says. Yeah, I'm sure they're really disappointed that a new serial killing Ghostface is on the scene and has decided to take up residence in another town. Really disappointed. That does remind me of one of Scream 4's most potent moments, when a crime scene onlooker goes all The Birds on Neve Campbell's Sidney and blames her for bringing the killings with her. But we're getting ahead of ourselves, aren't? This scene has plenty more awful stuff to go yet.

RANDY!

And yet still one of the worst decisions they could have made. It's just silly, isn't it? I mean, this shit is morbid for Martha to be holding on to that tape just in case another killer comes around, isn't it?

"Toldja I'd make a movie some day! Well, if you're watching this tape it means, as I feared, I did not survive these killings here at Windsor College. And that giving up my virginity to to Karen Colcheck at the video store was probably not a good idea."
"Karen Colcheck?"
"Yes, Karen Colcheck."
"Creepy Karen?"
"Shut up! She was a sweet person. We were working late, putting away some videos in the porno section and, ya know, shit happens."

Oh lord, the video tape back and forth between Dewey and Randy! :/

I'm glad you find your goody future husband's banter so funny, Gale, but while you're here in this scene, I think we can all agree that we'd much rather be watching Gale & Gale Investigations on another channel.

I'm not gonna lie, guys. I'm debating whether to even include Scream 3's "trilogy" rules. I mean, it's just so silly and tacked on. This would have at least made more sense if, as Scream 3 was originally meant to do, it was set in Woodsboro. Alas.

"The reason I am here is to help you so that my death won't be in vein. So that my life's work will help save some other poor soul from being mutilated. If this killer does come back and he's for real, there are a few things you gotta remember. Is this simply another sequel? Well, if it is: same rules apply. Here's the critical thing. If you find yourself dealing with an unexpected back-story, and a preponderance of expedition then the sequel rules do not apply. Because you are not dealing with a sequel. You are dealing with the concluding chapter... of a trilogy!

That's right, it's a rarity in the horror field, but it does exist. It's a force to be reckoned with, because true trilogies are all about going back to the beginning and discovering something that wasn't true from the get go. Godfather, Jedi, all revealed something that wasn't true that we thought was true. So if it is a trilogy you're dealing with here are some super trilogy rules...

"1. You've got a killer who's going to be super human. Stabbing him won't work, shooting him won't work. Basically in the third one you gotta cryogenically freeze his head, decapitate him, or blow him up.
2. Anyone including the main character can die. This means you, Sid. It's the final chapter. It could be fucking Reservoir Dogs by the time this thing's through.
3. The past will come back to bite you in the ass. Whatever you think you know about the past, forget it. The past is not at rest. Any sins you think were committed in the past are about to break out and destroy you.

And he goes on to wish them good luck and, "for some", a see you soon invitation. Of course, nobody from this group actually did die, nor did the finale end up like Reservoir Dogs. If anything, Scream 4 adhered to the rules of Scream 3 much more than Scream 3 did. Funny to note that there was originally a fourth rule, "never be alone." It was taken out because, hilariously, Gale goes off by herself (and the others let her without a fuss, curiously) as soon as Martha leaves.

An amber-hued hair clip. Seriously. AND THOSE PANTS OH MY GAWD! Of course, it just keeps better and better worse and worse.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I repeat.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How long until this late '90s, early '00s fashion trend takes off again?

AND THEN THEY JUST SEND HER ON HER WAY!

Sorry for getting so shouty, but it bears shouting. I mean, she shows up out of the blue in Hollywood, shows them a video tape, and then just walks off into the (figurative) sunset. Hell, I'd be thinking she was a suspect. Especially given what her brother's own video said about the past and the beginning and things never being what they seem. Is it too crazy for these guys to assume (or at least Gale since she doesn't personally know Martha) that maybe Randy was a puppeteer from the very start and now he's using his meek sister (lol, MEEK!) to play out some of his dirty work?

You guys, I just came up with the better ending to Scream 3. Sigh.

Even if that wasn't the case, wouldn't they feel a bit strange about sending this 17-year-old off by herself amongst Hollywood as a serial killer is on the loose specifically targeting people with connections (however fictional) to the original Woodsboro?

Sigh.

Thank gawd that's over because one scene later we revisit Gale & Gale Investigations, which is basically what I want my life to be like, okay?

Scream:
Intro, Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12, Scene 13, Scene 14, Scene 15, Scene 16, Scene 17, Scene 18, Scene 19, Scene 20, Scene 21, Scene 22, Scene 23, Scene 24, Scene 25, Scene 26, Scene 27, Scene 28, Scene 29, Scene 30, Scene 31 Scene 32, Scene 33, End Credits

Scream 2
Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12, Scene 13, Scene 14. Scene 15, Scene 16, Scene 17, Scene 18, Scene 19, Scene 20, Scene 21, Scene 22, Scene 23, Scene 24, Scene 25, Scene 26, Scene 27, Scene 28, Scene 29, Scene 30, End Credits

Scream 3
Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12, Scene 13

Scream to Scream, Scene by Scene: SCENE 13 of Scream 3 (0:47:27-0:51:24)

In this project I attempt to review the entire Scream trilogy scene by scene in chronological order. Heavy spoilers and gore throughout!



SCENE 13 of Scream 3
Length: 3mins 57secs
Primary Characters: Detective Kincaid, Gale Weathers, Dewey Riley, Sidney Prescott
Pop Culture References:

• Kiss Me Deadly and Murders in the Rue Morgue (posters on Kincaid's wall)

I love that Kincaid (or, ya know, the set decorator) has a newspaper clipping on the wall headlined "A 'Nice Vice'". I can only imagine that it's a puff piece about himself that he hangs on the wall in prize position near posters for old scary movies like Kiss Me Deadly and Murders in the Rue Morgue.

"Who knows more about Maureen Prescott than her own mother?"

Er, considering you just admitted that Sidney once identified the wrong killer in court and that it's documented Sidney didn't know her mother's scandalous past before Tatum went all Richard Gere on her, you're probably not gonna get much out of her.

Also: 2000 was a popular time for baggy dress shirts, wasn't it? Christ, even I had some at the time. They were my "formal" look. LOLOLOLhate.

"Do you wanna have this conversation with a polygraph?"

"Was that a threat, Detective?"

"When it's a threat, you'll know it."

"Was that a threat?"

I think this dialogue is meant to be menacing, or something. Is it meant to be setting up Kincaid as a potential suspect because (oh dear) he likes scary movies and may have an anger issue. It's hard to tell, I'm too dazzled by Ehren Kruger's sparkling dialogue in this scene. To wit:

Boys, boys, let's compare our gun calibres later!"

What entendre!

Also: It was a complete accident that I paused the video on that moment with Courteney's face doing... whatever the hell it is it's doing. I'm not sure what it is, but you never can tell these days with her face.

Sid making a superstar entry into the LAPD station, of course.

Erotic.

The music in this reunion scene between Sid and Dewey, as well as Sid and Gale directly afterwards in Kincaid's office, is really terrible. It's thick like syrup like everybody on the production forgot where they were and decided to make it into a scene from a TV movie about a kidnapped girl being returned to her mother 20 years later. Or something. What would I know?

So apparently Neve Campbell is on Grey's Anatomy now? Or she was? I'm not sure. Anyway, she gave an interview where she discussed working about with Patrick Dempsey and it just reminds me how strange is seems now for the man to have been cast in Scream 3.

Did you have fun reuniting with Patrick Dempsey, having done a Scream movie together?

CAMPBELL: Yeah, it was really fun! I hadn’t seen him since Scream, so it had been at least a decade. He’s a great guy. They’ve been on that show for nine years, so they definitely know what they’re doing. It was fun to be around a group who have been working together for so long.

Any chance of there being a Scream 5?

CAMPBELL: We’ll see. I’m not sure they’re going to make it, to be honest. If that were to come up again and they were to approach me, I’d have a chat with them about it.

Hmmm.

I think in this scene, amongst some others, you can really tell Neve Campbell wasn't entirely with it on Scream 3. I don't mean "with it" in the sense that, say, Lindsay Lohan isn't with it anywhere anytime anymore, but "with it" in the sense that she probably didn't feel particularly inspired about making the film. Her role was already reduced significantly, almost to a supporting role for half the run time, and here she barely seems to raise a pulse as she finds out her mother is a significant part of the investigation. She was, however, totally "with it" in Scream 4 in case you're wondering.

Of course, upon seeing the photographs Sidney asks to go to the place they were taken. That means two things: a) more amazing Gale and Gale murder investigations, b) the worst cameo in the entire franchise. The worst everything in the entire franchise, actually. I shudder just thinking of it. We'll get to that next time though.

Scream:
Intro, Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12, Scene 13, Scene 14, Scene 15, Scene 16, Scene 17, Scene 18, Scene 19, Scene 20, Scene 21, Scene 22, Scene 23, Scene 24, Scene 25, Scene 26, Scene 27, Scene 28, Scene 29, Scene 30, Scene 31 Scene 32, Scene 33, End Credits

Scream 2
Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12, Scene 13, Scene 14. Scene 15, Scene 16, Scene 17, Scene 18, Scene 19, Scene 20, Scene 21, Scene 22, Scene 23, Scene 24, Scene 25, Scene 26, Scene 27, Scene 28, Scene 29, Scene 30, End Credits

Scream 3
Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 8, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 11, Scene 12

The Best (and Worst) Posters of 2012 - Part I

Coming to this year's evaluation of film posters I was scratching my head wondering what could possibly be at the top. Unlike prior years, there were no pieces of imagery that struck me in such a way that they screamed to be hailed as the best of the year. There wasn't anything like Here I Am, Funny Games, Antichrist, and so on. That's certainly a shame, but it also made compiling the list perhaps even more interesting. I literally had no idea what I was going to put at the tip top of the list, and I think it's saying something when I mention that the #1 poster of the year (as chosen by me) was one that I hadn't seen until just a few days ago. When I saw it I was besotted and I reckon you will be, too.

I admire every one of the fifty images below in one way or another - I wouldn't entertain the thought of listing them if I second-guessed myself about their quality - but I also come at this list much differently to most. You won't find a single Hollywood summer blockbuster on here, and that's not because I'm against them, I just think that this year they were mostly a pile of junk. I trawled foreign film lists, independent film award lineups, and festival fringes to find some marvellous gems including the number one poster. I think anybody doing a list of this kind owes it to themselves and their readers to do as much. The last thing I'd want to see (and I have seen them in my research) is a list that all but replicates the top twenty grossing films of any given year.

Not this year, thanks. The movie's still amazing though!

Don't get me wrong, I am keenly aware that everybody has different tastes. I like what I like, but I would hope many of you readers wouldn't expect any less of me. Those who have been reading me for long enough probably know that I'm willing to forgive a poster for its ills if I see something unique in its design or special in its intention. I, too, have my own aesthetic preferences and if your poster deals heavily in colour and bold imagery then I am more likely to take a second glance. As evidenced time and time again, I don't so much care about a film's quality when I comes to doing a list like this. If that were the case then... well, I haven't even seen half of the titles listed (and some of the others are outright terrible). I hope that you like the list, and maybe you will discover some gems that you'd never seen before.

50. Apart
49. Barbara
48. The King is Dead!


47. Wuthering Heights
46. Silver Linings Playbook
45. Boy Eating the Bird's Food


44. Hail
43. Zero Dark Thirty
42. Anna Karenina


41. After Lucia
40. The Master
39. Chasing Ice


38. Francine
37. The Hunter
36. This is Roller Derby


35. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
34. Headshot
33. Argo


32. Django Unchained
31. Elena
30. The Color Wheel


29. Apres le neige
28. The Turin Horse
27. Cabin in the Woods


26. Antiviral
25. Berberian Sound Studio
24. The Innkeepers


23. Amour
22. Amour
21. Neighboring Sounds

20. Killing Them Softly
For not resting on its laurels. For being as blisteringly obvious, refreshingly so, just like the film.


19. Gayby
For the colourful animation that's playful, but yet alludes to shadows and distance between friendship.


18. The Imposter
For the slow-fade of the movie's theme. For the intrigue.


17. The Bay
For making the audience look twice and question themselves. For the ick factor.


16. Moonrise Kingdom
For retro chic. For feeling so lush one could touch it and feel damp moss.


15. Polisse
For the succinct representation of its themes and not resigning its marketing to simple police drama cliches.


14. Casa de mi Padre
For being a comedy with an actual comedic poster. For "Funniest Movie You'll Ever Read".


13. The American Scream
For rewarding viewers with a keen eye. For the intricacy without becoming ugly.


12. Rust and Bone
For the rustic (LOL!), rough around the edges take on complicated love.


11. Paranorman
For being cute and creepy with vivid colours. For not being shy.


10. V/H/S
For the creativity and playfulness. For taken a well worn horror poster tactic and reinvigorating it. For being so much better than the movie.


9. Project X
For giving off an anarchic vibe without slapping us in the face with its obnoxiousness. For the cheeky X (seemingly the only connection to this film being a "project x". For being so much better than the movie.


8. The Woman in Black
For being genuinely creepy and the exact opposite of the Photoshop mess that was the rest of the marketing campaign. For being a great poster for the original film as well (which, being a TV movie, never got anything like this).


7. Alps
For being weird in a cool, dramatic, designed way. For the icy silver colour scheme.


6. A Royal Affair
For being old fashioned and classically posed. For the hands, gloriously referencing the film's tug of war (and hearts). For period glamour.


5. Frankenweenie
For the IMAX juxtaposition - hi tech meets classic. For the stark, but eye-catching imagery. For being so damned cute despite being, ya know, about a zombie dog!


4. In Their Skin
For the beguiling oddness giving way to beguiling creepiness. For not forsaking atmosphere over the boo hysterics of other genre artwork.


3. The Paperboy
For the retro chic and powdered pink noir tinge. For being oh so simple, but balanced. For dripping sweat.


2. Neighboring Sounds
For diluting an entire film's tapestry (suburban security, Brazilian slice of life, neighborhood kooks) into one beautiful, striking image. For its classic, sketchy aesthetic. For featuring a cat so prominently (hey, I'm biased!)


1. An Oversimplification of Her Beauty
For the artistry. For the colours. For the boldness. For the way it holds my gaze and rewards the viewer with something fresh each time you look. For being crazy art.

And that's that. We'll get to the worst of the year in due time. Those ones are not quite as fun to look at repeatedly as I suss out rankings and edit HTML! What were your favourites of the year?