Category Archives: suspense

“Corridor of Mirrors” Compromises Past Life Obsession

fantasy, horror, romance, suspense, thriller

Directed by Terence Young, Corridor of Mirrors is a 1948 film based on a book by Chris Massie. It appears Massie may be best known for his novel “Pity My Simplicity,” which was also adapted into a 1945 movie, Love Letters, starring Jennifer Jones.

Corridor of Mirrors is Young’s directorial debut. He’s best known for kicking off the James Bond franchise by directing the first two Bond movies, Dr. No and From Russia with Love. His last Bond movie was Thunderball. Additionally, he directed Audrey Hepburn, Alan Arkin and Richard Crenna in Wait Until Dark.

Edana Romney and Rudolph Cartier adapted Massie’s book for the screen. The script was a vehicle to showcase Romney’s talent and launch her career, which never took off, though she spent her later years writing a screenplay about the life of Richard Burton.

On the other hand, Eric Portman as Paul Mangin is impressive. His movie credits include A Canterbury Tales, The Golden Mask and The Bedford Incident. If you’re a Prisoner fan, he played Number Two.

With Young’s gothic horror, romantic melodrama and film noir, the movie held my attention despite the weak storyline. In fact, the remastered quality of the Cohen Film Collection’s Blu-ray makes the cinematic images fascinating. Watching Young’s camera work with low then high angles that include the striking contrast of the cinematography of Andre Thomas was a marvel.

The story follows Mangin as a contemporary artist obsessed with the Renaissance lifestyle and art. He wears clothes from the era and rides around in a hansom cab. He meets the stunning Mifanwy, and they become lovers. Even though she is married, Mangin becomes possessed with the idea that the two of them are past life lovers from the Renaissance. In their past life, they were married, but the relationship ended tragically. Mifanwy is mesmerized into thinking his fantasy is accurate, and she goes behind the corridor of mirrors in his mansion, where the fantasy begins. She dresses up in Renaissance gowns made by Mangin.

The fundamental problem with this movie is visualizing spiritual connections because such an occurrence is invisible to the naked eye. Though Young uses mirrors, angles and melodrama to help, it’s a challenging subject to film. Kenneth Branagh mastered it in his 1991 Dead Again with a clever twist at the end. As a matter of fact, Albert Lewin tried an earlier film in 1950 with Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, which bettered Corridor of Mirrors.

The movie is worth seeing for those who’d like to see a suspense thriller that borderlines horror. Note that this movie is Christopher Lee’s film debut, playing Charles.

Thank you, Blu-ray Down Low, IMDB and Theater Byte, Good Reads, for providing information.

Guilt

“Guilt” as a Simplistic Story Reduced to Flat Ending

suspense, thriller, ,

Co-directed by Karl Jenner and Lyndsay Sarah, Guilt is another story about how screwed up a psychologist is and the field of psychiatry. The story follows a psychologist, played by Janet Shay. Shay co-wrote the script with Sarah. Jessie is the psychologist’s name, and she feels angry about all the world’s child abuse. As a child psychologist, she goes vigilant by targeting child sex offenders. It’s not just any offenders, but those who escaped severe sentences. As the story progresses, Jessie has second thoughts about her bent on being a vigilante when she questions a former case with disturbing revelations—perhaps she has gone too far. The movie is available on Amazon.

A small-budget film with a limp script. The acting is functional but misses the underlying realistic angst of the anticipation of knocking off a few child offenders. The writing is void of a lot of dialogue, which is probably good since the actors lack harmony in the storytelling—like disjointed communications of “Now, why am I here?”

A background story of some characters would have added to the storytelling. Perhaps the two writers could have created more depth in their dialogue. According to the co-directors statement, “Dipping our toe into a feature film for the first time, we knew we would have to be as self-sufficient as possible. Guilt is a self-funded project by us both, but also two of our filmmaking buddies.”

Their statement says quite a bit, as Guilt is their first movie. “We carried out most of the roles and labor ourselves from the birth of the story idea to the last stages of post-production, and we’re still going. Quite an achievement, and sure, we’re proud of each other. Most importantly, we think we proved that you don’t necessarily require a big budget (or even a reasonably sized one) to produce a noteworthy film. It’s the team behind the film that counts,” they added.

Shots of stalking, walking, and dripping water faucets are standard-issue suspense/thriller ploys that fall flat in dry sand—no substance. The filmmakers could’ve learned about camera angles, timing, and undercurrents from Martin Scorsese.

I kept waiting for Jessie to roll with the revelations and change as a character, to no avail. The ending came abruptly without the movie offering any meaning to what I just saw. Inclusion was slow, tedious, and had multiple substantial plot holes, making me frustrated because they were obvious. They are first-time filmmakers, and it shows, but you have to admire them for completing the movie and getting it distributed.

The movie also stars Hayley Flowers and Sandra Stockley.

“Woman of War” Humorous Fight Against Climate Change

action, drama, movies, review, suspense, thriller

Written and directed by Benedikt Erlingsson, Woman of War follows Halla, played by Halldóra Geirharðsdótti, who seems mild-mannered and friendly to her neighbors. On the contrary, she is a vigilante against the aluminum industry. At night, she crusades to destroy the polluters and causes of climate change.

The newspapers report the vandalism calling her plight as “The Woman of the Mountain.” Halla is scathing mad using a vicious, yet effective, tirade against the Iceland aluminum industry. Her campaign keeps her functioning “normal” but jeopardizes her dream.

A dream of becoming a mother to an orphaned girl from Ukraine, Halla ups the ante, becoming more daring with her antics to stop the aluminum company. She finds herself fighting against time as she questions whether her second life as a notorious eco-terrorist is worth the sacrifice of her impending motherhood.

Filmed with the vivid backdrop of hills in Reykjavik, Iceland, the movie marks another collaboration with Erlingsson and Geirharðsdótti’s long working relationship. I admire Erlingsson’s ability to infuse drama and comedy while Geirharðsdótti’s knack for subtle points of humor drew me into the story. Her vicious tenacity and heart could have gone overboard but pulled back just in time with the introduction of fabled motherhood and discovering what it signifies to be a hero.

Geirharðsdótti carries the story of Halla, a 50-year-old independent woman with a quiet routine, though she leads a double life as a passionate environmental activist. The humor is subtle but effective as the drama builds, and she becomes bolder and bolder from petty vandalism to outright industrial sabotage. She triumphs pausing the negotiations between the Icelandic government and the corporation building a new aluminum smelter in her region.

The story shifts when Halla receives an unexpected letter confirming the adoption of a child. A little girl who waits for her in Ukraine. As Halla prepares to abandon her role as saboteur and savior of the Highlands to fulfill her dream of becoming a mother, she decides to plot one final attack to deliver the aluminum industry a crippling blow.

The final attack is suspenseful because “What if she gets caught?” Her goal to be a mother is no longer achievable. All her efforts are in vain, yet her crusade is for the children like her adopted daughter—securing a livable planet for the generations to come.

Watching the movie until the end is worth it, though there are subtitles. DVDs are available in the States with streaming available on the usual outlets.

“Tyrel” Defines Black Man With White Men

drama, suspense, , ,

Written and Directed by Sebastián Silva, Tyrel follows the solitary black man on a weekend birthday party of only men and heavy drinking. His name is Tyler, played by Jason Mitchell. He joins his friend, played by Christopher Abbott, on a trip to the Catskills with several people he doesn’t know, and they are all white men.

The handheld camera and sharp cuts by Alexis Zabé along with the editing by Sofía Subercaseaux and Jennifer Lame sustain the perilous tone.

Although Tyler welcomed, he can’t help but feel uneasy around a close-knit group of white guys. The combination of alpha male posturing include large quantities of alcohol starts to get out of hand, and Tyler’s precarious situation starts to feel like a nightmare.

The movie shot with a handheld style probing subtext and body language conjures an undeniable underlying tension of the American climate. The story evolved from Silva’s observation of racial tensions in a strictly male setting.

On a crisp snowy winter’s day, Tyler and his friend John, two young restaurateurs from New York City, push a car along a back road high in the Catskills Mountains. They’re on the way to a weekend getaway to celebrate the birthday of Pete, played by Caleb Landry Jones, one of John’s old friends, at a cabin in the woods.

Tyler needs the excursion, even though he will be among mostly strangers, because the home he shares with his Puerto Rican girlfriend, played by Ann Dowd, is packed with her visiting family, along with her ailing, elderly mother to whom she is devoted.

Having an empty gas tank is only the first in a series of discomforting moments Tyler encounters and causes over the next 48 hours. Right off the bat, one of his new acquaintances mishears his name as “Tyrel,” a subtle but significant alteration that both gives Sebastián Silva’s latest film its title and sets up a theme of racially-tinged, innuendos that leads the good-natured Tyler towards a shaky mental edge.

The Chilean Silva, who has lived in New York for the past 17 years, approaches the subject of race as an outsider to American culture, but an insightful writer of alienation. The story unfolds by capturing natural moments with the talented ensemble cast.

The cast, which includes Michael Cera, represents a range of electric and sometimes eccentric personalities, expands on a situation Silva initially observed while vacationing in Cuba with a friend of his. They came across a group of American tourists, drunk and in their mid-20s, and all but one of them white.

“It was probably my imagination, but the black guy seemed alienated. Alienation is a topic that interests me, and I saw it right there. And at that moment, this guy’s alienation was linked to the color of his skin. Racism feels like it’s always timely in America. It never ceases to be an issue, and that was part of it this moment. Something profound was happening there,” explains Silva.

Later, Silva’s friend went to his cabin in the Catskills to celebrate another friend’s birthday. “And they were all white, and one of them was black, but there was nothing awkward about their dynamic.  At the very end of their weekend, they took a selfie and the black dude was the one who took it. That selfie also inspired this film. The mixture of that moment with what we had witnessed and talked about in Cuba made a case for something compelling, so I explored it,” recalls Silva.

“I wanted Tyrel to be the movie that speaks for the middle-class black guy,” he says, “the black guy that wasn’t a thug. The black guy that’s like most of the black guys out there these days. There are a lot of black guys that are trying to be successful and do things in their lives, but they get in the situations that are awkward for them that they don’t know how to handle.”

Although the film deals with tension arising from racial difference, nothing about the story, or the characters, is purely black or white. Instead, the movie shows a lot of layers, so the story is not directly in the racial issue. “I’m not completely sure these guys mean to be cruel or to look down on Tyler. Black people have been put in such a generic box. So, Tyler’s not going to be a saint and he’s not going to be a victim. I don’t want to have clear victims or clear victimizers. I don’t want to have the bad guy and the good guy. I don’t want a conversation about taking sides. I want to make people think about what they witness. This movie will live in every American’s own set of prejudices and opinions. I want people to be somehow troubled by the conclusions they come to on their own,” reckons Silva.

The Quake Grabs On and Never Let’s Go

drama, foreign films, suspense, thriller, , , ,

Directed by John Andres Anderson, The Quake begins in 1904 when an earthquake with a 5.4 magnitude on the Richter scale shook Oslo. Its epicenter located in the Oslo Rift runs directly through the Norwegian capital. Quakes from the rift happen daily. Geologists cannot be sure, but arguments indicate that we can expect major future earthquakes in this area. When the major earthquake happens, nobody can say for certain. The density of people and infrastructure in Oslo is significantly more vulnerable today than in 1904.

The impressive cast includes Kristoffer Joner,Ane Dahl Torp,Kathrine Thorborg Johansen,Jonas Hoff Oftebro, and Edith Haagenrud-Sande.

According to Anderson he realized the facts about the earthquake were true, “The notion of a Norwegian earthquake movie was immediately somewhat absurd. Norway is actually the most seismic active area in northern Europe. In 1904 there was a major earthquake hitting the Oslo-region. This type of incident will happen again. And no one can say when.”

In 2015, The Wave was proof of a Scandinavia film, even on a limited budget, gives Hollywood competition in that genre. “They’ve had a monopoly and been supreme on the so-called ‘High Concept’ movie,” explains Anderson. “And at the same time also add a bit of Scandinavian flair to it. Even in the most faithful genre film, one should never sacrifice character drama. And neither did we want to with The Quake.”

The Wave and The Quake are produced by the same production company lead by Martin Sundland.

Anderson talked more about the important of never sacrificing character for drama. He sees them as instrumental to whether we as audience observe the disaster – or actually experience it. “Because if you’re not experiencing it, it doesn’t matter how spectacular scenes we manage to create. While delivering edge-of-the-seat-thrills, the development of the characters and the ties between the members of our family is always at the core of The Quake.”

The movie follows Kristian, played by Kristoffer Joner, a struggling father, trying to come to grips with what he has been through before this film. His daughter Julia, played by Edith Haagenrud-Sande, is desperately seeking her father’s care and attention. The love of Kristian’s life is Idun, played by Ane Dahl Torp. And all of them their lives completely changed by what Anderson calls “this merciless, brute and blind force of Norwegian nature.”

The movie is as physical, character-driven spectacle just as Anderson intended. He puts the audience the heart of an Oslo being torn apart, feeling the impact of these forces on the family who are trying to keep it together. The movie takes you on a riveting ride – emotionally, visually and finally full-on thrilling action. .

The movie never lets up, and it is constant action, harrowing situations with all odds against them, yet they overcome the obstacles to, yet, face another dire circumstance. Keeping me on the edge of my seat through the movie is a fantastic and remarkable way to see a movie.

Joner looks familiar because he’s starred in The Revenant and Mission Impossible: Fall out.

Anderson’s first time as a director, he started as a camera assistant for cinematography legend Sven Nykvist. He worked as a Director of Photography for many years on notable Scandinavian films such as Department Q: Conspiracy of Faith and Buddy.

The movie is in Scandinavian with English subtitles.  

Golden Globe Winner – In The Fade

drama, foreign films, suspense, , ,

Written and directed by Fatih Akin, In the Fade is the winner of the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Actress Festival De Cannes for Diane Kruger’s performance of Katija. Her life suddenly falls apart because out of nowhere her husband Nuri, played by Numan Acar, and little son Rocco, played by Rafael Santana, are killed in a bomb attack.  Kruger performance is so believable in these scenes it was hard for me to watch. Any wife and mother will relate to what it must be like to suddenly lose your family.

Katija friends and family try to give her the support she needs, and Katja somehow manages to make it through the funeral. But the mind-numbing search for the perpetrators and reasons behind the senseless killing complicate Katja’s painful mourning, opening wounds and doubts. The mourning is not too long and fits well with the storyline.

Danilo, played by Denis Moschitto, a lawyer and Nuri’s best friend, represents Katja in the eventual trial against the two suspects. The suspects are a young couple from the neo-Nazi scene. The trial pushes Katja to the edge, but there’s simply no alternative for her because she wants justice.

In the Fade is a political film that throws a lot of punches at the injustice of senseless killings to make a strong statement.  Kruger is a strong actress and brings believability to her role. There are situations in the film which explain the injustice but Katija doesn’t buy it and wants justice.

The film is in German with English subtitles. Special features include cast interviews, Behind In The Fade & Inside In The Fade.

 

2:22

drama, suspense, thriller, , ,

Directed by Paul Currie and starring Michiel Huisman, Teresa Palmer, and Sam Reid, the movie follows air traffic controller Dylan Branson, played by Huisman, where two planes almost collide after a blinding flash of light paralyzes him for a few seconds.

As a result, Branson is suspended from his job, and he becomes cognitive of repetition of sounds and events in his life at exactly the same time every day. Guess what time that is? The title of the movie, 2:22.

The underlying pattern soon builds and draws him New York’s Grand Central Station daily at 2:22 p.m. He meets up with a woman who works in an art gallery, Sarah, played by Palmer, disturbingly complicated by her ex-boyfriend Jonas, played by Reid. Still, Dylan must break the power of the past, and take control of time itself.

Every day, on the main concourse of Grand Central Terminal, Branson sees a businessman at the ticket counter reading a newspaper, a couple kissing, six school children, and a pregnant woman standing under the famous clock. It’s not always the same businessman, but it’s always the same pattern.

Earlier in the day – other patterns play out and haunt Dylan – a plane flies overhead, glass shatters, car screeches. It becomes clear to Dylan, and to Dylan alone, that these supposed random series of events, in this busy, noisy city, are not so random.

This is the enigma of 2:22.

How this movie plays out is crucial to whether or not the movie will be enjoyed, and Currie describes it best, “2:22 is about the fear of love. It’s also about the past that can secretly haunt us all. It’s a story about a guy who is trying to protect his girl at all costs, against time itself. Time is both Dylan’s ally and his enemy.”

The movie isn’t perfect and some may find it hard to enjoy, but it is a good attempt at a complex topic about taking control of time both the past and the future.

In Order of Disappearance

action, drama, foreign films, suspense, , ,

Directed by Hans Petter Moland and The New York Times critics’ pick, In Order of Disappearance stars Stellan Skarsgard, Pal Sverre Hagen and Bruno Ganz. The movie is filled with action and is constantly moving as a diehard thriller. The movie follows an honorable citizen, Nils, played by Skarsgard. He uncovers evidence that his son was murdered and a victim in a turf war between the local crime boss and his Serbian rivals. Following his discovery, Nils embarks on a quest for revenge.

The movie is very good because Nil is a fish out of the water. Introverted and hard-working snowplow driver Nils has just been named “Citizen of the Year.” When he receives news that his son has died of a heroin overdose, nothing seems to make sense.

Disbelieving the official report, Nils quickly uncovers evidence of the young man’s murder – a victim in a turf war between the local crime boss, known as “The Count”, and his Serbian rivals.

Armed with heavy machinery and a good amount of beginner’s godsend, Nils embarks upon a quest for revenge that soon escalates into a full-blown underworld gang war, with the body count spiraling ever higher and higher.

The movie is a rocket ride and hilarious in a very dark way. Skarsgard makes the movie great, and I have a fun time watching it.

The Ones Below

suspense, thriller, , , ,

3d_rgb_theonesbelow_brwrpThe Ones Below, written and directed by David Farr, is an intense psychological thriller. The movie features really good acting and the suspense keeps the movie flowing intensely. The movie stars Clémence Poés, best known for playing Fleur in Harry Potter, David Morrissey, Stephen Campbell Moore and Laura Birn. The British movie is really intense and ideal for those who appreciate a thriller with gripping fear.

Expecting their first child, Kate, believably played by Poésy, and Justin, played by Moore, become friendly with their new neighbors, Jon, played by Morrissey, and Theresa, played by Birn, who are also expecting, in the downstairs apartment. With the undertones, there is a sense that something is dreadfully off and threatening about the new downstairs neighbors. Things take a turn after a dinner party upstairs and the new neighbors start to show sinister intentions towards Kate and Justin after an unfortunate tragedy strikes. The relationship turns threatening, leaving the couple fearful for their well-being. With an ending that twists around and leaves an unsettling feeling of despair, this psychological battle with the tenants in the apartment downstairs continuously keeps the tension and tone of the movie at a high level.

Farr, the screenwriter for both Hanna and The Night Manager, make his directorial debut with this movie. He did a fine job of crafting a dark, modern fable in which the lives of two couples become fatally intertwined. Kate and Justin live in the upstairs flat of a London house. Thirty-something, successful and affluent, they are expecting their first baby. Everything appears well on the surface though Kate harbors deep-rooted fears about her fitness to be a mother and her ability to love her child.

One day, another couple, Jon and Theresa move into the empty apartment below. They are also expecting a baby and, in stark contrast to Kate, Theresa is full of joy at the prospect of imminent motherhood. Pregnancy brings the women together in a blossoming friendship as Kate becomes entranced by Theresa’s unquestioning celebration of her family-to-be. Everything changes one night at a dinner party in Kate and Justin’s flat. Kate begins to sense that all is not as it seems with the couple below. Then a tragic accident throws the couples into a nightmare and a reign of psychological terror begins.

Keep in mind, The Ones Below is a dark movie and stays that way to the end.

https://youtu.be/ltXE4gddJsQ

High-Rise

book, drama, fantasy, indie, suspense, thriller, , , , , ,

high-riseHigh-Rise, from genre-bending director Ben Wheatley, is an attempt to adapt the classic J.G. Ballard novel of the same name with a brilliant and talented cast including Tom Hiddleston, Oscar winner Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans and Golden Globe winner Elisabeth Moss. If you watch the movie knowing it is dark satire, then you might not have a problem watching this movie. It is boring at times because the pacing is off, but the acting is what saves the movie.

But the message is clear and just as poignant today as it follows the inevitable result of a breakdown of social strata and public decorum, known as class warfare. The classic book is a dystopia with a very strong message, but the movie doesn’t even come near to the heart of the book.

Dr. Robert Laing, played pretty solid by Hiddleston, recently moved into a luxury, high-rise apartment building designed by the enigmatic Mr. Royal, played by Irons. With a literal divide of the classes, the wealthiest residents live on the upper floors with the best amenities while residents on the lower floors experience routine blackouts and other disruptions of basic services. As additional flaws in the building begin to emerge, both physically and socially, the lower floor residents revolt, turning the building into a battlefield for an all-out class warfare.

I wanted the movie to be good and worth seeing because the Ballard’s book tells a great story and the actors are really good. Yet, the script and editing could be tighter. It just dragged on and on with no reason.

The Blu-ray comes with some bonus features that includes a commentary from Tom Hiddleston, Ben Wheatley and Producer Jeremy Thomas, an in-depth look at adapting the beloved novel from the page to the screen, a look at the acclaimed film’s 70s set design, special effects, and more.