Viewing Gum

FILM 2013: #39. V/H/S

A problem with V/H/S, shared by practically any anthology or portmanteau piece, is that it’s very hit and miss. Here the framework - a group of obnoxious vandals break into a house to steal a videotape and find a whole bounty of weird footage - is fine, but it’s obvious that there wasn’t a lot of pre-planning as to what films would end up in the package. Many of the stories share similar structures (most starting with a group videoing themselves in a car on a journey somewhere), leaving it feeling pretty repetitive, and while they all sell the found-footage angle (the how, as opposed to the why), few convince on the nostalgic VHS remit (heck, one is filmed through a web video chat). It’s a shame, as each story has one cool trick or killer moment, but you have to go through an awful lot of pre-amble and unlikeable characters to get there. And with 5 stories, plus the framing narrative, it gets very tiresome. It’s perhaps why the strongest story (10/31/98 by directing team Radio Silence) is shown last (even after the framework is resolved), and is almost worth putting up with the rest of the film to see - an atmospheric, exciting and brilliant tale of a Halloween night that takes a terrifying turn, creative and inventive while having the technical and special effects expertise to match it on a small budget. Out of the more established American indie wunderkinds like Joe Swanberg, Ti West and Adam Wingard present here, there’s is the real highlight. The format is decent enough for the sequel to still be an interesting proposition, but hopefully next time they’ll learn from their mistakes.

FILM 2013: #38. The Green Slime

Though best known for his yakuza thrillers and Battle Royale, Kinji Fukasaku also threw out this oddity in the late 60’s, a US co-production space monster movie, in which a team of astromen on a mission to destroy an asteroid hurtling towards the Earth bring back the titular green slime from the asteroid’s surface to their space station, only for it to grow and spawn into cycloptic tentacular gribblies. It has a classic cheapie sci-fi look and feel, but its weird quirks (everyone giving each other the thumbs up the whole time, a hilariously groovy dance scene, and a killer theme song), whether by design or something simply being lost in translation, and some surprisingly icky gore, make it more entertaining than other films of its ilk.

FILM 2013: #37. Side Effects

A film of unexpected delights, Side Effects appears initally to be a commentary on our overmedicated society, the power of pharmaceutical companies, and an “Am I going crazy?” psychological thriller. But the story suddenly shifts its focus, unpacking a whole new set of questions and moves its goalposts - it is still about all those things mentioned before and more, but the dynamic changes and perspectives are called into question. The performances are a joy to watch (especially a compelling and complex Rooney Mara, and an over-ripe ‘Wicked Stepmother’-esque Catherine Zeta-Jones), and Soderbergh peppers the film with small but significant details and character beats that flesh out what otherwise could have ended up being very silly. Instead, it’s just the right level of silliness, an effective and very entertaining ‘page-turner’ where you’re never sure what’s going to happen next, which is something remarkably rare. And for that alone, Side Effects should be commended. Intriguing and fun.

Eurovision 2013 Semi-Final Round-Up!

philmfotos:

Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985)

Image: 365

Posted by: @Moloknee

A limited number (10) of signed and numbered prints are now available for purchase by clicking the button below the images or emailing me here.

FILM 2013: #36. Robot Jox

A giant mecha battle movie from Stuart (Re-Animator) Gordon that is self-aware to an extent, but fairly unironic, thereby retaining its lo-fi charm, especially with its stop-motion robot fights, which are equally impressive and shonky at the same time. Most of the time however is dedicated to the human ‘jox’ who pilot their metal warriors, and thankfully these segments are rife with corn and cheese, and don’t drag as much as you might expect. This is largely down to a script peppered with bad jokes and characters who are mostly jerks. Our ‘hero’ is a total self-obsessed dweeb, his nemesis a comedy Ruskie who steals every scene, while the supporting cast is filled with stereotypes. It’s clearly too naff for a wide audience (too silly for adults, yet too bloody, bawdy and darkly comic for kiddies), but well placed for the midnight movie crowd.

mkupperman:

Gordon Ramsay’s Fairytale Toilet Kitchen Nightmares.

superhamish:

youknowyourebritishwhen:

beginner’s guide to eurovision song contest

Shit gets real tense when we vote for France and give them like 10 points and they don’t vote for us at all

Getting emotional thinking about how great Eurovision is.

I wish all my gay american friends could watch it. 

mkupperman:

John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John & a Screaming Corpse

Joan Cornellà