HOT MANIAX

Minggu, 23 Februari 2014

The Seventh Victim (1943)

Finally got around to watching The Seventh Victim (1943) and man, it's terrific. Maybe you knew that, as it's generally regarded as one of the best horror films of all time. That's me, always late to the party! Well, hey, at least I still show up. Now point me to the snack table, and on the way we can talk about this super boss Val Lewton production.

The Seventh Victim boasts three of my very favorite themes in both cinema and life: Satanism, urban isolation, and ennui!
Even if you're some kind of freak who thinks this movie stinks, you cannot deny the effect it's had on the genre: its influence is obvious in horror classics Psycho and Rosemary's Baby.
Speaking of an influence on Psycho, the shower scene in this film is full of dread and menace like nobody's business. NOBODY'S I SAY
There are some gay undertones in the Frances/Jacqueline relationship, no? It certainly seemed like it could be read that way. Then again, I think most things could be read that way, so.
Speaking of Jacqueline, let's talk about her white hot, outré Cleopatra wig! It's perhaps the most startling thing in the movie. I looked up actress Jean Brooks because once you see that wig, why wouldn't you? The results were not as I'd hoped, to put it mildly: a few years of floundering outside the studio system until an untimely death of malnutrition caused by alcoholism. I was reminded of Gail Russell, whose equally sad tale I discovered after watching the superior ghost story The Uninvited (1944). It's always shocking when "I wonder if _______ is still around?" and some internetting deliver a depressing life story that's in complete contrast to the perceived glamour of Hollywood's golden era.
I understand there were a few scenes scrapped during production, and I'd really like to see 'em because this shit wraps up in about ten seconds, and some ideas come out of left field in the final moments.
Man, what a delightful downer of an ending!

I think perhaps the greatest lesson in all of this is that you really can't go wrong with a Val Lewton horror production. Also, that I love snacks...but unless this is your first time here, this is not surprising.

By: Unknown On 06.52

Minggu, 09 Februari 2014

The Final Frame

This is the final frame of what horror movie?

By: Unknown On 07.59

Kamis, 06 Februari 2014

Nope, still the worst

I know that y'all know that I love The Haunting (1963). I mean, I've said it so many times that even I'm sick of hearing it. It's like, man, we get it, if you could marry The Haunting you would, now let's all move on.

I also know that y'all also know that I loathe the 1999 remake about as much as I adore the original. Why, I have such a vendetta against Jan de Bont's The Haunting, you'd think that it chews its gum too loudly or it murdered my family. Why, I was just talking about it fairly recently!

Last night, however, I had a thought: what if I'm being too hard on it? Is it really so bad, or am I just holding on to a 15-year grudge for no reason? Is there hope that The Haunting '99 and I could ever come to some sort of a ceasefire? To find out the answer to all of these questions, I did something I never imagined that I'd do: I watched it again. I watched it again and tried to keep an open mind, tried not to compare it to the 1963 masterpiece, tried to treat it as its own thing, tried to enjoy it.

I tried.

And guess what? I failed because this movie is so terrible! I found myself completely unable to stop comparing it to the original (and to the book both films are based on, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House) because it's such a...such a...twisted perversion of that film that I can't ignore all of the differences, the oh so wrongness of it. This movie is obscene like that defiled statue in The Exorcist. It's the worst stereotype of an American: it's fat, loud, and stupid. It's an abomination! I've said it before and I'll say it again, because after watching The Haunting again, these sentiments are forever sealed in my heart place: If it were up to me, though, every copy of it would be placed in a big pile, and then the pile would be burned down, and then the ground would be sown with salt.

All that said, the film is not without its highlights. Let us peruse them!

1. Lili Taylor, because Lili Taylor.

2. Virginia Madsen! I'd totally forgotten she makes an appearance, but isn't she just the best? (yes)

3. This guy on the left, who has one word of dialogue.

4. Luke gets fucking decapitated in front of her, and Eleanor responds by calmly saying "Oh no."

5. Goodness gracious but Catherine Zeta-Jones is so pretty.

6. Eleanor's morphing teeth

7. Eleanor's hair vagina

That's it! Those are the highlights. Well, okay, so maybe Eleanor calling Hugh Crain "grandpa" could be a highlight but my god that is just so so so despicable, I can't. I can't.

When it comes to movies, music, any of that stuff, I tend to have a "live and let die" attitude. Everyone likes different things! The heart wants what the heart wants! There's no accounting for taste! You do you, girl! But for fuck's sake, if you think this is a good movie or- Charles Nelson Reilly forfend- you think The Haunting '99 is better than The Haunting '63...you really need to see your doctor because there is absolutely something wrong with you. It could be a blood clot, demonic possession, or worse and I worry about you, get it checked out.

By: Unknown On 09.24

Jumat, 24 Januari 2014

Jessica Tan (Chen Jieshi) from Singapore - Lenglui #269

Name: Jessica Tan (Chen Jieshi)
Date of Birth: Aug 10
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shixxjie
About: Just over a week ago, a coffee maker company based in Singapore, OWL International has came up with one of the most creative and viral Chinese New Year music video for year 2014. This entertaining music video (Hello~, 过年几happy有没有？) is for everyone who finds Chinese New Year visiting a chore and it clearly portrays how it's like in Singapore.

Apart from the catchy tunes and mishmash of English, Mandarin and Hokkien rap lyrics, what really caught everyone's attention is the hot girl in the red dress and everyone wants to know who she is.

Jessica Tan (Chen Jieshi)

Well, since we haven't posted an update for awhile, we decided to put ourselves to work for couple of hours since Chinese New Year is approaching. Something for you guys, the least we can do!

Jessica Tan (Chen Jieshi)

The hot girl in the red dress is Jessica Tan, or also known as, Jessica Chen Jieshi from her Facebook account. All we know so far is that Jessica is a freelance model from Singapore.

Jessica Tan (Chen Jieshi)

By: Unknown On 01.23

Jumat, 06 Desember 2013

awesome movie poster friday - the JAMIE LEE CURTIS edition!

Sometimes I take Jamie Lee Curtis for granted. It's just not raging all the time, you know? If I see Adrienne Barbeau's name in a film's credits, you can consider my shit lost. Same with Charles Napier and Joan Collins and anyone from the cast of Dallas or Melrose Place. But if JLC comes up, my shit remains totally under control. Maybe it's because I've seen everything in her horror oeuvre countless times, or maybe it's because she's too familiar now that I know so much about her regularity issues. Maybe it's because she's made so many movies I'll simply never see (I mean, Christmas with the Kranks combines like ten things I hate, and that level of negativity can only be partially mitigated by the presence of Ms. Curtis and M. Emmet Walsh).

I was recently reminded, however, that my love for her is an eternal flame burning so bright that even The Bangles are all "Tone it down, Stacie". This is thanks to the JLC documentary on the recent 35th Anniversary Blu Ray edition of Halloween. I know...I know! You could have a very sizable movie library consisting solely of the various releases of that GD movie. Every five years- at least!- there's a new one with fancier packaging or cruddier packaging, more special features or no special features, better picture quality or a plush Lester (I WISH), and so on. This 35th Anniversary edition has to be it, though, the version to end all versions. It has to be. It's chock full of everything (commentaries, the television edit, blah blah blah), so what else is there?

Best of all- and what put me back on the Jamie train- is "The Night She Came Home", an hour-long documentary chronicling Curtis's first and only convention appearance, at HorrorHound 2012. The feature, shot by Curtis's sister Kelly, basically just follows the star around as she arrives and works at the show, posing for photos, signing stuff, and talking with fans. An inconsequential event for those of us relegated to watching it all unfold on a TV screen, perhaps, but, as corny as it may sound, there's a lot of love going on throughout. It made my coal black horror fan heart beat at least one time! And by the end I remembered that despite the dilution of the title "Scream Queen" in recent years, she really is the Super Ultra #1 Scream Queen For Real. How could I ever take her for granted? ILU JLC!

What better way to celebrate than with an Awesome Movie Poster Friday? None. There is no better way. Except pizza.

Halloween