Films for October

October is my favorite month. I love the “otherness” of Halloween. It’s neither Pagan nor Christian nor a corporate creation but a combination of all three. It’s the one time of the year where dark thrills are du jour and people are more comfortable admitting they have a fondness for the twisted.

Don’t believe me? Why is the most popular musical of all time not a frothy Rogers & Hammerstein piece but Phantom of the Opera? Why did Aronofsky’s creepy little art house flick Black Swan become an Oscar contender? And how many of you really wished the Beast hadn’t transformed back into the Prince?

I was one of those kids whose teachers liked her but wondered if she would grow up to be a psychopath. Part of it comes from my fave films, which I never had any reservations about sharing.

If it’s dark and twisted, I’m automatically intrigued. If it’s well-written I’m smitten, and if it’s the caliber of Pan’s Labyrinth, I’m swooning.

So, in honor of October, I want to share all of my favorite dark films. Some of them are comedies but nonetheless they have a morbid streak. There’s no better time to check ’em out than Halloween, so get those Netflix accounts queuing!

[REC]

28 Days Later

A Clockwork Orange

A History of Violence

Alien

American Werewolf in London

Army of Darkness

Black Death

Black Swan

Brotherhood of the Wolf (Le Pacte des Loups)

But I’m a Cheerleader

Dark City

Dawn of the Dead

Dog Soldiers

Dracula (1931 and 1992 versions)

Edward Scissorhands

Evil Dead 2

Fargo

Four Rooms

Harold and Maude

Heathers

Hocus Pocus

It

Jawbreaker

Labyrinth

Let the Right One In

Night of the Living Dead

Nightmare Before Christmas

Nightmare on Elm Street

Nightwatch/Daywatch

Pan’s Labyrinth

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Psycho

Rosemary’s Baby

Saw (first only)

Se7en

Shaun of the Dead

Shutter (THAI VERSION!)

Silence of the Lambs

Sleepy Hollow

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Tale of Two Sisters

The Company of Wolves

The Crow

The Descent

The Devil’s Backbone

The Howling

The Mummy (1999)

The Orphanage

The Others

The Prestige

Titus

Triangle

Trick R Treat

Underworld

Film Bites [July/August/September]

So, there was not an exclusive July or August Film Bites, because I did not see that many kickass films. Now that September has come about, let me smoosh them together.

Fright Night

True Blood fans: drink deep. A good vampire story makes my heart flutter. Yet they are so hard to come by.  It is a remake of the ridiculously cheesy 80s flick by the same name. This time, the vampire is played by an inhumanly smooth and sexy Colin Farrell. Dr. Who’s David Tennant also makes an appearance. Basically, it’s a fun romp through the vampire genre. Good cast, good story, good action. It won’t earn Oscars but I had more fun with this flick than I have in a very long time. From the girl who hates 90% of vampire films: SEE THIS! It featured in my Daily Trojan column too. And as for Colin Farrell as the badass vampire…

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

WTF?! Everyone thought this movie would suck. Until it suckerpunched them all with a totally badass summer flick that has brought to light the inherent terror and creepy factor of apes. Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in Lord of the Rings, performs as Caesar, a hyperintelligent ape raised by his scientist-cum-father, James Franco. It’s still summer fun but it’s very very entertaining. A gorilla tearing apart a helicopter? Badass.

Elfen Lied

I watched this on Netflix after hearing so many mixed opinions. Some hate it, some love it. Count me in the latter. The characters are good but not groundbreaking. The action is nice and the art is decent but I don’t value those over plot. I believe it’s one of those series where I just fell in love with the idea. Basically, another humanoid race has some into existence  that has has enhanced telekinetic abilities but is considered to be psychotic and mass-murdering (which they often are). As such, the government captures and experiments on them. Until one breaks free. She’s shot in the head during her escape which gives her a split-personality — a childlike sweet persona, and her vicious and sociopathic true one. She comes under the care of a young man and his female friend, and things go crazy from there. Anyhow, it’s worth a look. Some of the characters are fascinating and it’s an interesting, scary look at the nature vs. nurture debate.

Mad Men

I watched all four seasons in two weeks. That tell you something? The show follows the rambunctious antics of advertising men in 1960s’ New York. It’s sumpteous visually but it also sports a fantastic cast, from Christina Hendrix as a sangfroid and alluring office manager, John Hamm as a ruthless but conflicted creative director, and Elisabeth Moss as a talented chick who wants to achieve a respectable profession in a male-dominated industry.

Drive

Do NOT see the trailer for this! It gives away everything and recasts the film as a high-speed car flick. Which it’s not. Instead, it’s a noir thriller that happens to have a badass yet frustratingly taciturn getaway driver. The car chases are impressive, but it’s the visceral mood of the story that really elevates the film. Watch this especially if you liked A History of Violence or Eastern Promises.

Dracula (1931)

This movie is older than you. It’s older than your car. It might be older than your house. And it’s still awesome. The music and atmosphere are delciously sinister, and the melodramatic script is giggle-worthy. But all of that pales to the smoldering sex pot that is Bela Lugosi as Dracula. Most people are only familar with his image, or his classic line “What music they make!” In the context of his performance, however, he creates an charismatic and very alluring Count. Things aren’t bad just because they are old. Except my cell phone.

Death Note

Death Note proposes a simple idea: what if you had the power to kill anyone? Criminals who have escaped justice? Those who give nothing to society but always take? Here, a highschool boy named Light finds a Death Note — a book owned by death gods wherein they write the names of all destined to die. Light decides he wants to purge the world of all criminals and create a perfect society. ut he’s also a megalomaniac, viciously intelligent bastard who soon causes a wave of death upon the world In his path stands an eccentric but brilliant detective, as well as a police team headed by Light’s unknowing father. The series is amazing in that the main character in incredibly unlikable. Moreover, most of the series is spent with him outthinking almost everyone who tries to stop him.

Red Dead Redemption

Psyche! Red Dead is actually a video game. But it’s told in such a cinematic manner that it feels like the player is injected into some algamation of every Clint Eastwood Western ever made. An ex-convict is shoved back into the world of gangs and savagery when the government blackmails him into tracking down his former gang members. From wrangling a stmapeding herd of cattle in a thunderstorm to playing both sides of a government overthrow in Mexico, it’s a wild, wild west.

Film Bites – June

Willkommen! I have not died/run away/stumbled into another dimension. A more personal post is coming soon. I’ve been a bit blogged out lately. Or rather I have a job where I spend most of the day glaring at a computer screen so after work I’d rather play video games and watch movies.

Go to USC and you run into a lot of film people. Some are yuppie film snobs who pontificate over obscure art films and get into bloody rows over film versus digital. But despite stereotypes, a lot of people at USC are just really like movies.

Back in LA and now subscribed to Netflix, I’m watching more films these days. I’m actually contemplating a film column for the Daily Trojan this semester.

Anyhoodle, I think I’ll do an occasional post just on films I’ve been watching. Because everyone needs some good cinema. Since most movies are bad, I’ll stick to the ones I liked.

Trick ‘r Treat
2007

Yes I watch Halloween films in high summer. This film was a direct-to-DVDer. Most films like this suck. Trick ‘r Treat, however, is awesome. Four stories loosely intertwine on All Hallows’ Eve. They are not Halloween stories in the vein of Nightmare Before Christmas (which is really a Christmas story set during Halloween). Instead, we have werewolves, serial killers, and creepy hooded ghouls.It’s a funny, creepy, refreshing look into the spirit of Halloween.

 

 

Black Death
2010

The Bubonic Plague was a terrifying time in Europe because people had no concept of germ theory. It was just a wave of death crashing down and it led to fear, paranoia, and fanaticism. Black Death takes this idea to its twisted core. A knight (Sean Bean) has been charged to find a necromancer,  said to dwell in a village untouched by plague. He and his men recruit a young monk who knows the area. The monk joins to find his lady love. It’s a dark trek across Europe and it only grows more vicious when they find a village populated by atheists. The film does not make arguments for or against religion. Instead, it’s a look at the misery brought by fanaticism and fear. This is not a date night movie (though I’d totally dig a guy who liked it), but it’s a very good one.

Kung Fu Panda 2
2011 

Those of you who scoff obviously did not see the first Kung Fu Panda. The sequel is more epic in scope and story but still has all the charm of the first. The voice acting is top notch, especially Gary Oldman as a villainous peacock and Dustin Hoffman as Shifu the red panda kung fu guru. And Jack Black, love him or hate him, is awesome as the titular panda, Po. When he’s honed in he’s fabulous. The story is a classic hero’s journey that works as a great summer afternoon flick with action, fun, and a lot of gorgeous cinematography and animation.

How to Train Your Dragon
2010 

Aye, I eyerolled at the trailer of this film. Then I saw it and realized I was a dumbass. It’s a cute story of a timid boy in a village of dragonslaying vikings. When he finds a dragon, however, he befriends it, and uses what he learns from the dragon to rise to fame in his clan — even though that means eventually slaying a dragon. If you have a bigscreen TV, you owe it to your cinema-loving soul to get this. The flying scenes are spectacular. That, and the characters are charming, especially the dragon Toothless. I would not rank it among my favorite animated films (Spirited Away, Lion King, Millennium Actress, and Princess Mononoke reign supreme) but it’s a solid flick with a lot of love crafted into it.

Game of Thrones
2011 

Buahaha, not a film, but definitely cinematic. This television series takes place in a world called Westeros, with parts of it are reminiscent of medieval Europe. It’s not your old fashioned sword and sorcery though. I have to sweetly borrow Alison’s description: “Holy hell — a Medieval zombie political intrigue sex romp. It sounds so awful on paper, and is just so amazing in reality!” Best description evar. But yes, the show, based on the books by George R. R. Martin, is a brutal but emotionally searing epic about war, love, honor, and a whole lot of lack of it. That, along with The Borgias and Justified, were some of the best television gems of the season.