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THE BLOOD OF HEROES: A Post-Apocalyptic Sport & A Killer Cast [Two Cents]
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Two Cents is a Cinapse original column akin to a book club for films. The Cinapse team curates the series and contribute their “two cents” using a maximum of 200-400 words. Guest contributors and comments are encouraged, as are suggestions for future picks. Join us as we share our two cents on films we love, films we are curious about, and films we believe merit some discussion. Would you like to be a guest contributor or programmer for an upcoming Two Cents entry? Simply watch along with us and/or send your pitches or 200-400 word reviews to [email protected].
Drama, Comedy, Romance, Science Fiction, Musical… cinema is filled with grand, sweeping, big tent genres. And yet, so often Cinapse’s particular brand of cinephilia dwells in the subgenres. Too numerous to list, subgenres are where the meat is really added to the bone of deep cut cinema. And one of the greatest subgenres of them all is the post-apocalyptic picture! This month we’re celebrating the release of author David J. Moore’s World Gone Wild, Restocked and Reloaded 2nd Edition: A Survivor’s Guide to Post-Apocalyptic Movies with a curated selection of some of the Cinapse team’s very favorite and most beloved post apocalypse films – all of which are highlighted in Moore’s exhaustive love letter!
The Pick: The Blood of Heroes AKA Salute of the Jugger (1989)
Known internationally as The Salute Of The Jugger, writer/director David Webb Peoples (writer of Blade Runner, Unforgiven, Soldier, and 12 Monkeys!) unleashed his underappreciated diamond in the rough The Blood Of Heroes in 1989. It’s cult has grown ever since. Let’s see if we can’t grow it even further.
Featured Guest
David J. Moore, Excerpt From World Gone Wild, Restocked and Reloaded 2nd Edition: A Survivor’s Guide to Post-Apocalyptic Movies
It’s too bad David Peoples hasn’t made more movies. Peoples, the writer of Blade Runner and Soldier, wrote and directed this fantastic, one-of-a-kind post-apocalyptic sports movie. The world it’s set in is sparsely populated in an expansive wasteland topography, and no one drives or even remembers what cars were. There are no guns, no wars, just depressing villages in the desert full of hungry people whose only real joy in life is to wait for the Juggers to come into their town to play their violent game. It is a bloody game, an honorable game, where freelance gladiators divided into two teams vie in three rounds to place a dog skull on a spike in the ground. First one to place the skull on the spike wins. Game over. Rutger Hauer (never better) leads his winning rag-tag team through the desert, one village after another, and his team gets even better when they pick up a new “Quick” (player whose job is to focus on putting the skull on the spike) in the form of the plucky girl warrior named Kidda (Joan Chen). When their winning streak has nowhere to go but down, the team decides to go to the vast, never ending underground city (maybe the only one left in the world) where The League plays their harder-core version of Jugging. Hauer challenges The League, and this sets off the final sport scene of the film where the amateur team faces off against the huge, pro gladiators of The League. It’s a really good movie… Overseas, this film is known as The Salute of the Jugger. Other members of the fine cast include Vincent D’Onofrio, Delroy Lindo, and Richard Norton. Filmed in Australia.
The Team
Ed Travis
In any big sports or tournament film, the end product is only as good as its final act – the championship game, or the title match. In the “can’t believe this exists” The Blood Of Heroes, you’ve got a post-apocalypse film, a tournament action film, and a sports movie all in one! And the final salute of the juggers… er, final set piece? The ultimate post-apocalyptic David & Goliath match of our heroic underdog athlete-warriors against the gladiators of the last remaining elites? It’ll put goosebumps on your skin and get your fists pumping. Overall the film is an astonishingly good time, but it’s really that final act that spikes the dog skull and secures the “must see” status of this obscure artifact.
A stellar cast propels this odd concoction, with Joan Chen as Kidda, the upstart jugger (athlete of the only known sport in this post-apocalyptic hellscape) who impresses Rutger Hauer’s Sallow with her skills, and ultimately inspires him to take their ragtag team back to The League from which he was banished to test their skills against the greatest juggers in the world in a massive underground city containing the only remnants of wealth and power. The Toecutter / Immortan Joe himself, Mr. Hugh Keyes-Byrne, shows up as Lord Vile, an agent of power who seeks to corrupt the purity of the game.
But in The Blood Of Heroes, the game is all that is left, and there remains honor among the juggers. No challenger has ever gone more than 26 stones (the primitive game is marked by 100 stone throws per round). Sallow, Kidda, Young Gar (Vincent D’Onofrio), Mbulu (Delroy Lindo), and the rest of the team risk the only hope they have (whole, functional bodies) to see if they can become legendary. The film is clear in its worldbuilding, concise in its structure, and quits while it’s ahead. Don’t miss this unique, well-cast, multi-genre’d gem!
“We should be fucking and drinking by now”… damn, I love Rutger Hauer in just about everything he did. His action roles are among my faves. He brings a distinct grit and attitude to these roles that I tend to really vibe with. And in The Blood of Heroes, that’s exactly what I got.
The film opens with the most brutal version of Capture the Flag I’ve ever seen, where the flag is a skull and the combatants bludgeon each other until incapacitated. They call this brutal sport “The Game”. It was a tad bit bloodier and more painful than I remember at church camp. But, it’s sure fun to watch.
In this opening scene, we meet our most important characters – our heroes for the next 90 minutes (or 104, if you’re watching the Australian cut, which I did not). Hauer’s Sallow and Joan Chen’s Kidda are the most compelling, but the star studded cast is all pretty fantastic.
When watching it earlier this week, Ed suggested he thought this would be my kind of jam… and he was right. While horror is my favorite genre, post-apocalyptic action of this sort is not too distant as one of my favorite other genres. Give me a brutal sport or game as a centerpiece and I’m almost certain to be a fan, unless of course it’s Rob Zombie’s awful attempt at an unofficial Running Man remake, 31.
From goofy onlookers of “The Game” to the journey of Chen’s Kidda, the badass presence of Hauer’s Sallow, a great little performance from a younger Vincent D’Onofrio, and the fact I that get Delroy Lindo on my screen, The Blood of Heroes is indeed my kind of jam.
Spencer Brickey
What if Bull Durham happened in the Mad Max universe? Then you’d have The Blood
Of Heroes; A post-apocalyptic tale that’s little on the apocalypse, more on its weird
mutated version of football, and the men, women and dog boys who play it.
Follows a surprisingly stacked cast (including a baby-faced Vincent D’Onofrio and an
appearance by Delroy Lindo that feels like a jump scare when he first appears) as they
wander (dog)town to town, taking on local teams in “The Game”, hoping to one day
make it to “The League”. It’s pretty basic post-apocalyptic stuff mixed with pretty basic
sports movie cliches, with the added benefit of genuinely talented actors walking us
through it all.
What it doesn’t have the benefit of, and what really hamstrings most of the film’s efforts,
is any sort of action choreography. What should be thrilling matches of quick moving
action and brutal violence instead feel like a group of actors who’s whole direction was
either “run serpentine that way” or “mash your sticks together”. The final “runout the
clock” sequence, which should feel akin to the final seconds of something like Miracle,
instead is just two people awkwardly shuffling in front of each other. It kills any sort of
ability for the tension-and-release of a good sports build-up moment, and really lays it
bare that you’re just watching people play pretend on a constructed set.
All that being said, I can’t say I was ever bored. Everyone is bought into the world,
especially Hauer, who you can always depend on putting in a good performance. The
world is hammy as hell, but in a perfectly goofy sort of way, never trying to overextend
past what it is; a cheapie exploitation flick with a fun hook.
Still, for a film that looked so much like an Albert Pyun film, I wish it had the same sort of
heart as a Pyun film.
CINAPSE CURATES MAD MAX RIPOFFS
Join us by contacting our team or emailing [email protected]!
11/11 – Doomsday
11/18 – Turbo Kid
11/25 – The New Barbarians
And We’re Out.
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Austin Film Festival 2024: THE EGO DEATH OF QUEEN CECELIA
The Ego Death of Queen Cecelia has a title that implies tragedy as well as an exploration of the inner life. This slow-burn thriller, while definitely a dark ride at times, delivers on its promise and eclipses the average festival feature.
With its world premiere at the 2024 Austin Film Festival, this small production explores big themes. Director Chris Beier, along with co-writer Daniel Wolfman, have crafted a noir tale set both in the world of online celebrities as well as the southern border of the United States.
Cecelia (Jo Schaeffer) used to be somebody. Well, on YouTube at least, which in the modern era is actually something. Monochromatic flashbacks transport us to her good times as well as the slow descent into obscurity, a sort of death presaged by the film’s ambitious title. The present is no great shakes. We see our main character make a series of unfortunate decisions, the consequences of which build and build until it becomes more than any influencer should have to bear.
Schaeffer, astonishingly in her first acting role of any kind, delivers a performance that’s equal parts pathos and cringe. Seeing this woman struggle to regain the ephemeral power she used to have over her own life is often hard to watch. Seeing her risk everything she has left for questionable gain is even harder. We can be disappointed, empathetic, and shocked all at the same time, but Schaeffer’s performance makes sure we’re going to feel something.
The cast around her shines. The affable John Merriman is the sweetest jerk-boss of all time. Her sister (Akasha Villalobos) feels like the bitter coworker we’ve all had. A series of seriously bad dudes (led by Holt Boggs and Steve Brudniak) are so quick to violence that the threat feels real from the jump with this crew.
The most astounding thing about this “little picture that could” is how much is doesn’t show, what it chooses not to say. It’s all too easy to over-explicate when putting script to screen, but here the audience is left to do some work in figuring out just how badly Celecia has, and continues to, screw up her life. That’s much appreciated.
The Ego Death of Queen Cecelia might have been made on a shoestring budget, but with compelling performances and a plot aching with tension, it delivers quite a payoff.
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ANORA: What’s Love Got to Do with it? Not a lot actually…
As far as films gaining momentum this awards season, it’s been hard to ignore the hype surrounding Anora, Sean Baker’s latest, being billed as a “romantic comedy”. Like his previous films Red Rocket and The Florida Project, Anora focuses on a sex worker, this time the street smart New York stripper Anora (Mikey Madison), whose Russian speaking ability lands her in the company of Ivan “Vanya” Zakharov (Mark Eidelstein) a young playboy, who also just happens to be the wealthy son of a Russian oligarch. This fateful encounter has the young, rich, and rather stupid young man hiring Anora to keep him company for the holidays, to the tune of $10,000. It’s during a drug fueled trip to Vegas, where the two elope that’s the inciting incident that fuels the back half of the film, as Ivan flees leaving Anora with his Russian keepers, when he hears his parents are on their way to force an annulment.
There’s a weird dynamic at work in Anora, when it comes to the actual relationship at the core of the film, that kept me at arms length. I mean, besides the fact that piece is really only the first hour of the film. During their time together neither party is ever really vulnerable to the other – there’s never a heart to heart, there’s never a moment of real connection shared between the two. Baker makes it clear both sides are actively manipulating the other, either for financial gain or sex, and this fact colors or outright negates any emotional resonance the piece might gain, as the affair never progresses past a transactionary phase. This definitely hurts the back half, since both individuals are exposed for their motives – Anora desperately looking to find Ivan to preserve the marriage, and Ivan looking to avoid any actual consequence for marrying the sex worker in a clear act of rebellion and his fetishization American culture.
While some younger audience members might feel sympathetic or even identify with either Ivan or Anora, the pair will most certainly frustrate and confound anyone over 30, like myself. While this is the case, one performance is definitely worthy of the accolades as far as I am concerned. Mikey Madison is a revelation here, I previously just knew her as the girl who tended to get killed a lot in films. Here she manages to add some real dimension and illicit some authentic sympathy with her portrayal of the manipulative dancer. The rest of the cast definitely delivers an entertaining rogues gallery to surround her, they just aren’t that likable when all is said and done. No doubt, this is by design, but for those looking to leave after some kind of emotional or social development from either party, you’re going to leave the theater empty handed. This all while offering up a final few minutes that will further reduct its female protagonist to her base most state, in a scene that felt really adds insult to injury as she treats herself like currency one final time.
Pretty Woman, Anora is not.
The film is far too cynical, materialistic and obsessed with how far it can drag its audience along without any kind of growth or stakes for its characters, and that’s what made me wonder about just what about it is resonating with so many people. Awards hype aside, the film is indeed hilarious and easily one of Baker’s best, but like Red Rocket the super explicit vibe is going to alienate a good chunk of viewers, primarily non film bros. While some women may cheer Anora on for ‘getting that bag!’, it’s problematic and a little sad in that we primarily view her through Ivan’s infantilized and hyper-sexualized gaze. Coupled with some painfully awkward, by design sex scenes, the film lacks the kind of heart and emotion that managed to override the director’s fixations, which is what allowed The Florida Project to have the reach it did. So, while Anora is most definitely a good film in the critical sense. I can’t cosign the hype or suggest this as a date movie you’d expect from the trailer.
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October’s Two Cents Found Footage Month Reaches a Fiery Finish with NOROI: THE CURSE
Kagutaba Lives!
Two Cents is a Cinapse original column akin to a book club for films. The Cinapse team curates the series and contribute their “two cents” using a maximum of 200-400 words. Guest contributors and comments are encouraged, as are suggestions for future picks. Join us as we share our two cents on films we love, films we are curious about, and films we believe merit some discussion. Would you like to be a guest contributor or programmer for an upcoming Two Cents entry? Simply watch along with us and/or send your pitches or 200-400 word reviews to [email protected].
For nearly two decades, Koji Shiraishi’s Noroi: the Curse spent years as an elusive treasure for viewers to sleuth out in the darkest corners of the Internet. It was released to modest fanfare in its native Japan in 2005, smack-dab between the death of the J-Horror boom and the international rebirth of found footage. However, the early days of social media gave Noroi a viral quality befitting its patchwork investigation–and the concurrent demise of Noroi’s avenues for distribution and resulting obscurity granted Koji Shiraishi’s mixed-media masterpiece an uncomfortable and unmatched sense of realism. It’s what quickly set Noroi apart from other found footage horror for me, and why I felt driven to be one of the film’s vocal champions.
This week, Noroi hits shelves in English-speaking countries as part of Arrow’s J-Horror Rising box set, along with Shiraishi’s 2007 film Carved: the Slit-Mouth Woman and five other hidden gems of the genre. It’s a refreshing new paradigm for this cult hit, hopefully granting Shiraishi the audience he’s more than deserved for decades. I hope this is the beginning of a “Shirassance,” with his massive body of work possibly on the verge of equally reverential distribution.
For now, I’m more than excited to revisit my favorite horror film with our guests and team members and get their take on Koji Shiraishi’s most notorious work of docufiction.
The Pick: Noroi: the Curse (2005)
Featured Guests
NOROI: The Curse (2005) is such an essential film within the found footage horror film canon because its director Koji Shiraishi was heavily inspired by earlier found footage mockumentary / pseudo documentary format films. The 1992 Belgian film Man Bites Dog and 1999’s The Blair Witch Project both came over to Japan and Shiraishi saw these and found them extremely interesting works. Shiraishi’s work within fact vs fiction narratives is strong overall, but arguably NOROI is where his work culminates and presents purely within an accessible horror film structure and narrative. Over the years, NOROI has garnered more and more respect from overseas filmmakers and critics with many citing it as one of the most important found footage horror films.
I first came across NOROI when I was making The Found Footage Phenomenon (Shudder / Vinegar Syndrome) and I actually saw Shiraishi’s Shirome (2011) first! The way the Japanese present a found footage narrative is so different to the west and very much intrinsically linked with their own history in J-Horror. So if you’re interested in Japanese urban legends, the link between presented fact and fiction and general horror themes and suspense, NOROI is a film not to be missed.
The first time I tried to watch Noroi: The Curse, I was ambitious. I had just seen Ghostwatch, the infamous BBC special that fooled a nation one Halloween in 1992, and I was shaken, but determined. I figured, “Well, I got through Ghostwatch, I can probably do this too.” I was mistaken. Not too long after intrepid, fictional documentarian Masafumi Kobayashi (Jin Muraki) finds himself reviewing footage of actor Marika Matsumoto (playing a fictionalized version of herself) where a ghostly silhouette appears in a dark grove of trees behind her, I simply had to tap out. I retreated to the comfort of my bed, and resolved to come back at a later time. When I was approached about writing about Noroi, I knew I had to venture back into the velvet darkness of the screen.
On my second approach, Noroi is just as, if not more, unsettling than my first impressions of it. Like Ghostwatch, and other greats of the Found Footage subgenre, Noroi understands the importance of reality as a grounding mechanism. Namely, the use of “truthful” or “real” formats, like the documentary, the various iterations of television shows we see, and the inclusion of real actors like Matsumoto all work together to trick our brains into buying into it all a little bit more. Logically, I understand that what I’m seeing on screen is fictional, but emotionally, the media formats my brain has been conditioned to think of as “true” over the years take over and a primal kind of trickery begins and lets in a rush of fear. The performances, writing, effects, all the elements of the movie create a perfect alchemy only the most effective films can create.
As I sat with the silence following Noroi’s cacophonous finale, I felt the dread that leaked out of the screen and into my apartment wash over me. In other words, it was just what I hoped it would be.
For those of a certain age, anyone who spent their formative years with the internet, many can remember going down the rabbit hole of “haunted videos”; late night searches across the web for video proof of the supernatural. These journeys down Youtube link chains usually netted you a dozen videos of “orbs”, more than a few videos of a fox’s midnight mating call titled “ghostly baby cries in the woods”, and a fair share of terrible fakes that stomped on the line between sincerity and parody.
But then, every once in a while, you’d come across something. It usually was deep into the evening, about a mile down into videos, right around the time you were clicking on links written in Cyrillic and Hanzi, that you’d come across something that was different. No orbs, no dramatic music, no 15x zoom to really magnify what you were looking at; instead, you’d watch something that would defy explanation. Maybe it was a shadow moving in a way that made no sense; or a human voice emanating from an empty room; or a reflection that didn’t match the way its owner moved. Either way, you found your hackles up, terrified in the depths of a search engine. It felt like you saw something you weren’t supposed to, something that was supposed to stay hidden.
That impending sense of dread, of peaking behind the curtain, is the exact wavelength that Noroi operates on. From the first frame, when we are first introduced to the paranormal investigators, everything feels off, stilted in a very sinister way. As we continue deeper into the mythology, and deeper into the terror, that familiar itch of macabre voyeurism comes creeping back; should I keep watching this? What am I about to see? Am I ready to face it?
With each new detail revealed, and with each ghastly paranormal encounter, you can’t help but feel the need to look away. But, it’s too late; you’ve been hooked, destined to see exactly where this haunted trail leads you, even if it will keep you up until the sun rises.
The Team
“I want the truth. No matter how terrifying, I want the truth.”
Noroi is a film whose formal inventiveness and unmatched cosmic dread has long established a place atop my favorite horror films. Over my 19 years spent with Koji Shiraishi’s masterpiece, though, Noroi’s most rewarding aspect is how each viewing teases out some new aspect to Shiraishi’s matryoshka-doll approach to documentary horror.
This time, I found myself drawn into the real world’s desperate attempts to cope with the supernatural in various mundane ways. TV variety programs commercialize and sensationalize the mysterious or unexplainable, treating potentially psychic children like real-life Stanley Spectors from Magnolia, and other panel shows frame disturbed individuals relaying dangerous messages as something kooky to flip through during one’s nightly programming. While all of Noroi is a work of fiction–there’s something quite biting to how Shiraishi depicts this compartmentalization of the bizarre and otherworldly.
All of this gloss, though, makes Kobayashi such a compelling character. While his documentary work may seem inseparable from this other pop journalism, Kobayashi distinguishes himself as a reporter who takes the paranormal extremely seriously. Including these myriad sources feels like a concentrated attempt to get at something deeper and meaningful, as if by doing so he undoes the degradation of generational knowledge reflected in everything from lighthearted clip shows to long-forgotten scrolls and survey documents. This act of restoration, though, yields increasingly disturbing results–revealing how this buried cultural past has gradually willed the strength to fight back against the rampant march of progress.
The collected experience turns Noroi into a demonically satisfying treasure hunt, cluing in viewers into a rich original world drawn from centuries of folklore. Shiraishi, co-writer Naoyuki Yokota, and legendary horror producer Taka Ichise quickly establish a narrative shorthand which allows viewers to add up Kobayashi’s clues in the face of a story with a staggering scope. It’s a tactic, though, that quickly turns against the viewer, as Shiraishi reserves Noroi’s most gruesome horrors for mere implication at the edges of Kobayashi’s frame. This cosmic danger only grows as we and Kobayashi get closer to the center of the curse, with our relationship to his subject evolving from documenter and spectator to doomed primary sources.
Noroi’s incendiary all-timer ending unspools without the comforting buffer of end credits separating its world from ours–consequently ensuring Shiraishi’s masterful blend of truth and fiction remains a searing, long-lasting experience.
I don’t tend to gravitate towards found footage horror, but this month of programming at Two Cents has been a cool opportunity to explore a subgenre I’m not totally sold on. What I have really appreciated about Noroi, Horror In The High Desert, and Lake Mungo are how watchable these things are. And by that I mean, using tropes from reality tv and documentary, these tend to be pretty satisfying watches because they’re drawing you in using almost primal manipulation of your curiosity. It’s like these filmmakers set up a complex arrangement of dominoes and when you press play on their movies, a highly orchestrated chain reaction to draw you in and intrigue and horrify you begins.
Noroi does a lot of really cool things to draw you in right away. I dig that it is a “movie within a movie” with bookends setting up the Russian doll component of the tale. It’s also neat watching this very early 2000s analog horror here in the internet age, grounding the film in a time that already seems nostalgic. Using reality tv gimmicks like replay, freeze frames, and zooming in on things the filmmakers want us to see, lead character and documentarian Kobayashi cheesily (and effectively) begins researching a curse and conveniently laying out a layered and complex demon mythology that has us wanting to look away one moment from a terrifying image, but looking more closely another moment to try to unravel the mystery. It’s engrossing stuff. Noroi also does a pretty good job with character work, endearing us to the tin-foil-wearing medium Hori, the cursed actress Marika, the little psychic girl Kana, etc. If Kobayashi can just unravel the mystery in time, perhaps they can all be saved! But we know it’s doomed from the start.
Of the 3 found footage horror films I’ve braved this month, Lake Mungo was by far the most haunting and terrifying to me personally. But Noroi was a frightening and effective piece of work, and I can’t wait to someday listen to Julian’s commentary track to see how far the rabbit hole goes.
PS: Bonus points for a super duper John Carpenter influenced score!
PPS: Them lil crawling babies will now haunt me for life.
I’ve mentioned before that I often struggle to find time to watch foreign language films, so despite my noted love for the found footage subgenre and related subgenres, it took me till now to finally catch this one, despite its widespread acclaim and Julian’s insistence for a few years now. But, I’m happy to say that despite waiting years to finally dive in, it was well worth it.
The documentary style of the film reeled me in at the very start. There’s no doubt that the filmmakers of previous selections Lake Mungo and Horror in the High Desert were highly influenced by Shiraishi’s style here. The style was what struck me most on this first (of many) watches of this film.
While I was struck most this go around by the style, it’s the thematic ideas are what will make me return and dive deeper. A few of these themes really stuck out – such as the clear notion that becoming engulfed by one’s pursuits, as noble as they are, can be very dangerous. In addition to being careful not to let one’s search for truth take over their life, the film also seems to be interested in the very nature of evil. As a pastor’s kid and a person of faith, both of these ideas – the search for truth and the nature of evil – are ones that will always keep me coming back to the well. So, it’s safe to say, I’ll be exploring this film more and will excitedly get my hands on Julian’s commentary to hear what he has to say, as well.
Smarter people here have deeper thoughts than I, so I’ll wrap it up there and really just leave you with my initial impressions. However, it seems inevitable that this will not be the last time I explore this film’s themes nor style. A genuinely solid piece of cinema that you can share with any friends who suggest that found footage is a low form of art.
NOVEMBER: Post-Apocalypse Now!
To celebrate the Restocked and Reloaded Second Edition of David J. Moore’s World Gone Wild: A Survivor’s Guide to Post-Apocalypse Movies, the Two Cents team is diving into some of the weirdest, madcap visions of our world gone mad for the month of November.
November 4 – The Blood of Heroes
November 11 – Doomsday
November 18 – Turbo Kid
November 25 – The New Barbarians (aka Warriors of the Wasteland)
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Weekend Roundup: CONCLAVE, VENOM: THE LAST DANCE, and RUMOURS
A procedural thriller set in the papal conclave, a surreal horror-comedy political satire, and the trilogy closer for a comic book antihero saga – here are some brief thoughts on a few of the films that opened at theaters this past weekend.
Conclave – dir. Edward Berger
Conclave is the latest from director Edward Berger, following up 2022’s multiple Academy Award-winning German language war epic All Quiet on the Western Front. The PG-rated Conclave is a more approachable film, a mostly English-language dramatized procedural centered around the fascinating – and inextricably political – process of instilling a new Pope.
Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Lawrence, the Cardinal-Dean who, upon the passing of the last pope, finds himself organizing and running the papal conclave – that is, the election process for a successor.
The film is both a fascinating look at the conclave process, and a compelling political thriller told within that construct. As a handful of candidates emerge with differing worldviews ranging from progressive to traditionalist to downright racist (among them Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Sergio Castellitto), Lawrence not only oversees the process but investigates the candidates and their pasts. As the Cardinal Dean, Lawrence is himself a potential candidate for the papacy – perhaps even a natural front-runner – but has removed himself from the conversation. He’s not interested, and secretly struggling with a crisis of his own faith.
We also learn that in his life the former pope had some wily insights and actions with which he set the stage for his succession, including secretly appointing the Archbishop of Kabul (Carlos Diehz) as a Cardinal, shifting the balance of power within the College, and refusing Lawrence’s request to be released from service – probably because he foresaw that Lawrence was best suited to lead the Conclave.
I really loved this film, and found both wisdom and hope in its analysis of faith and tradition. Lawrence stresses the humanity of the papacy in a speech to his colleagues: Doubt is the prerequisite of faith, and sin the prerequisite of forgiveness. Therefore they should elect someone who doubts, and finds his faith; someone who sins, and asks for forgiveness.
Venom: The Last Dance – dir. Kelly Marcel
When Venom was initially developed as a feature film, I was pessimistic of the idea of it being retooled as a superhero movie, especially divorced from the character’s classic origin story which is inextricably linked to Spider-Man. But Venom managed to be more amusing – and a bigger hit – than I anticipated, while its sequel Let There Be Carnage was gloriously nutty, fully winning me over as a fan, actively enthusiastic for a third film.
The franchise’s progression seems to have distilled, somewhat surprisingly, from its original filmmaking by committee into a more personal territory. Kelly Marcel directs this series closer (the previous entries were directed by Ruben Fleischer and Andy Serkis, respectively). Her name may not be familiar, but she is the only writer credited on all three films, with star Tom Hardy stepping in as collaborator on the last two. The pair have emerged as the architects of what has become the Venom trilogy.
After the events of Let There Be Carnage and a brief multiversal foray into the MCU (as a cameo appearance in Spider-Man: Homecoming), Eddie Brock and his gooey sentient alien symbiote Venom return home to find they’re fugitives, on the run from the police as well as a shadowy arm of the government, as suspects for Carnage’s crimes.
Essentially a road movie, the pair set out to evade their captors but don’t make it far. They’re also being pursued by huge insectoid alien monsters from Venom’s homeworld, and eventually latch onto how their tracking works: the aliens can only recognize Venom when the pair are bonded in their combined form. It’s an interesting mechanic that forces the duo to work together, while avoiding “suiting up”: Eddie vulnerable in his human form, and Venom acting as appendages. Whenever they do combine into Venom’s symbiotic form, the aliens are immediately back on their trail.
Parents may want to take note – thanks to a difficult-to-describe but cool-to-watch mechanism by which the aliens chew up their victims and expel their slurried remains into the air, the film is arguably the most gruesome of the series with occasional fountains of gore.
While not as pure unadulterated fun as the last film, The Last Dance maintains the series’ zaniness and humor, while also slowing down to weave in some poignant beats that show how these characters have grown. Eddie and Venom, previously a circumstantial odd-couple, have settled into a genuine friendship. But Eddie wonders about whether he’s missing out on love and family life, and Venom, previously more of an anti-hero, has developed a complex sort of humanity, demonstrating selflessness, empathy, and love.
Rumours – dirs. Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, & Guy Maddin
Rumours is the latest from Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, and Guy Maddin, the trio behind The Green Fog. The framework is a political satire following a meeting of the G7 leaders at the garden of a secluded estate in Dankerode, Germany, to discuss international affairs. The film has a small but impressive cast including some amazing talents including Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander, and Charles Dance as an American president (making no effort whatsoever to mask his English accent).
As the evening goes on and darkness settles in, the seven world leaders realize they’re not only quite alone but eerily isolated – the staff have disappeared and their phones aren’t working. It becomes apparent that things aren’t quite right, and they group gets a distinct sense that the world may be undergoing some crisis or apocalypse while its leaders are sequestered away.
At this point the film veers into survival horror as the group try to make their way back to society, encountering weird phenomena that confirm that they are not safe, and strange things are indeed afoot.
A surreal political comedy with elements of horror? With its clever premise, excellent cast, and proven filmmakers, this movie should be a slam dunk, yet falls far short. As a political satire, it’s not especially insightful nor funny, its gags invoking many a wry smirk but rarely a laugh. And most criminally for a movie that features masturbating zombies, it drags.
I imagine there are some viewers for whom this will hit them right on a particular wavelength where’ they’ll pick up what it’s vibing, but it definitely wasn’t for me – despite a strong start, as it wore on I found it increasingly tiresome.
A/V Out
Conclave, Venom: The Last Dance, and Rumours are all now showing in theaters.
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It’s Time to Embrace YOUR MONSTER
“Something really weird is happening at home.”
Since Halloween is upon us, it makes sense that we should find ourselves surrounded by our scary movie favorites this month. Whether it be slashers, hauntings, vampires, or zombies, movies featuring scares on the screen have long since come to represent the season that is Halloween. But amid all the screams and chills, a new unconventional entry into the Halloween genre is making itself known. Your Monster does not have the horror heft of something like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Scream, apart from the main character coming across as a final girl of sorts. There aren’t a ton of Halloween-centric films that aren’t dependent on traditional horror titles offering up horrifying images that are meant to cause eerie delight. But when the audience is treated to a stunning image of this film’s heroine coming down the stairs dressed as the bride of Frankenstein while dreamy music plays behind her, you’ll feel that a new Halloween classic has emerged.
Writer/Director Caroline Lindy’s feature debut opens with a young woman named Laura (Melissa Barrera) who is recovering from surgery in a hospital room when her playwright boyfriend Jacob (Edmund Donovan) breaks up with her due to not being able to handle her situation in the midst of his first play going to Broadway. After going back to her absent mother’s New York brownstone to recover and grieve, Laura encounters a monstrous creature (Tommy Dewey) in the closet of her old bedroom. Terrified at first, Laura eventually starts to get used to the monster who, in turn, helps her to take control of her life.
Lovers of films that dare to blend genres will have nothing but love and respect for what Lindy has crafted here. Your Monster skillfully melds romance, comedy, fantasy, musical, and horror-lite perfectly, doing right by each sensibility and, in some scenes, even taking them to new places. The movie’s opening sets the tone for the level of dark humor that this film is about as a recently-dumped Laura is wheeled out of the hospital while “Put On a Happy Face” plays over the credits. Lindy has fun with a couple of montages and flashbacks before the first appearance of the titular monster, who is given an entrance that’s simultaneously creepy and funny. From there a dynamic reminiscent of The Odd Couple quickly develops between the two, leading to several great moments, including having Laura unburden herself while Monster remains under her bed; a cute touch. Other instances, such as a dance sequence at the previously mentioned party are genuinely romantic and mysterious, giving the film another stellar opportunity to merge the genres even more. Throughout its perfectly paced 100 minutes, Your Monster maintains its magic, which includes a timeless quality (this is a film that could easily take place in the 80s) that allows it to be largely free of modernity, focusing solely on Laura and Monster.
If there’s one thing that would have made Your Monster better, it’s more scenes of the movie’s couple establishing their relationship. Not only would this have surely added to our investment in them as a duo, but the joy of spending time with these two creatures, who for different reasons find it difficult to face the outside, is too special to resist. But the scenes we do have are beautiful. A moment when the two recite Shakespeare is a genuinely lovely pause in the story that’s free of any kind of cynicism or irony. These kinds of scenes work especially well if you consider Your Monster to be the story of a woman connecting with her subconscious and using that experience to deal with where she is in her life. It’s always intriguing to first encounter a character when they are at the lowest point in their life. Seeing how they find themselves again or transform into someone new can result in beautiful storytelling, which Lindy has proven true. The director also credibly inserts the realness of life into so much of Laura’s experiences. Seeing her go through a bad audition is painful to watch, but almost plays like paying homage to everyone who tried and failed. Similarly, an awkward phone call between Laura and Jacob feels realistic and says a lot about how hard it is for them to relate to each other. Ultimately, Your Monster is an incredibly realistic portrait of someone dealing with despair and trying to come out the other side.
Barrera’s star continues to ascend with what is unquestionably her richest role to date. The actress is given a gift of a part that allows her to showcase the many sides of both her character and her talent. Each scene requires so much of Laura, but Barrera is up to the challenge, reveling in the character’s messiness and fight to get back to who she was before. She shows great chemistry with Dewey, who is affable and hilarious as Monster, giving him a winning personality that makes you eagerly await his next scene. The rest of the cast succeeds in giving their characters subtle nuances to avoid making them seem like all-out stereotypes, most of all Meghann Fahy, who shines as a Broadway star with hidden layers.
Back in the mid-00s, NBC aired a sitcom called Committed about New York singletons, one of whom lived in an apartment in which an old man known only as “Clown” resided in the in the closet. I was over at a friend’s house when the show was on and I saw Clown (played by Tom Poston) come and leave the closet without any interaction with the other characters. When I asked my friend and her sister who that man was, they informed me that it was the clown who lived in the closet. To the characters and my friends, this seemed like nothing out of the ordinary. Years later, I still can’t forget the clown in the closet and how normal it was played. Your Monster reminded me of the clown in the closet by the way it too plays the relationship between Laura and Monster for real. Rather than go full fantastic, Lindy approaches the heightened reality as a normal one, weaving it into the every day and crafting one of the greatest chronicles of what it means to be human.
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Criterion Review: THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY [4K-UHD]
![Criterion Review: THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY [4K-UHD]](https://i0.wp.com/cinapse.co/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/image-1.png?resize=1140%2C611&ssl=1)
Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren come under fire in this 80s British gangster classic
Hoskins plays Harold Shand. A mob boss out of the East End of London, who after years of wheeling and dealing, greasing palms, cracking heads, and sticking in a knife when necessary, is at the top of his game. Looking to leverage his position, he’s working a real estate deal that would go some way to making him a legitimate businessman. His vision sees a rundown area of the London Docklands being developed to elevate the city. Key to this is an American investor, whose arrival coincides with a spate of attacks against Shand’s organization. The sins of the past come to bear on one very long, very bloody day, where Harold has to confront other mob factions, underworld bosses, informants, and worst of all the IRA, as his well laid plans and criminal empire, all look to be crashing down around him.
The script by Barrie Keeffe immerses you in the underbelly of London, through rough and ready characters and quick-smart (and quotable) dialogue. Harold is a man who suspects his enemies are looking for payback, buy ruining his big deal, unaware something larger is at play. The main thrust is Harold’s hunt for the source of this threat, which of course gives us a crash course into the deed and misdeeds of this man as he made his way to the top of organized crime in London. It all feels very Shakespearean in a way, a blend of villainy, tragedy, and comedy.
What is also notable, is how The Long Good Friday paints a picture of 70s/80s Britain, leveraging in the social strife, economic hardship, and political tensions of the Thatcher years as a very effective backdrop, and complement to Harold’s scheme. This was a time where capitalism really took hold, markets were risky but rewarding ventures, investment was coming from overseas (notably in terms of buying up public assets) and the rich were getting richer. Director John McKenzie’s film is a rather bold endeavor with a intricate plot that in addition to the central conceit handles layers of social commentary and politics, not the least the UKs position in Europe, and a subplot handling the IRA, a particularly active and impactful element during the Thatcher years. Through back alleys, slaughterhouses, pubs and public baths, we see partake in the times, and Harold’s sprawling web of crime. Overlaid is Francis Monkman’s sax heavy score, which caps off the moody vibe.
While the entire cast impresses, and adds character to each corner of the film, it’s Mirren and Hoskins that make an indelible imprint. The former as Harold’s doll Victoria, a delicate yet incisive force, serving as a spoonful of sugar to Harold’s battering ram. A counterpoint is also made with her clearly being from an upper-class background, unlike the clearly working class Harold, a role that Hoskins really sinks his teeth into. A remarkable performance, crafting a man who evokes the Dunkirk spirit to say fuck you to those who oppose him, and his view of his country’s future. Hoskins layers in a snarling streak of a superiority complex and nostalgia tinged view of making Britain great again. A man whose hard hitting tactics have got him to his lofty position, who also has the hubris to think they’ll be enough to free him from his sticky predicament. It’s undoubtedly one of his finest performances, even in the final moments where Hoskins, without any dialogue, speaks volumes.
The Package
Criterion’s 4K-UHD release of The Long Good Friday is another slam-dunk for the distributor. It’s a clean, detailed, and authentic presentation. The downcast colors and muted palette of 80s UK are healthily represented, added resolution give enhanced texture to the grit and grunge of London’s underbelly. The transfer is free of damage and artifacts and retains a natural grain structure. Extra features also impress:
- Audio commentary with director John Mackenzie: A great commentary that not only complements the film, but also strives to work in the approach to the production, how the film changed through the various drafts and editing process. Most interesting are the sections devoted to the performance of Hoskins
- An Accidental Studio (2019), a documentary about the early years of Handmade Films: A full length doc. on the studio responsible for a spate of notable British features through the 70s, 80s, and 90s. Besides The Long Good Friday, this included Shanghai Surprise, Mona Lisa, Withnail and I, and the Monty Python Features. The doc. draws from the cast and crew of many of the studio’s features to dive into it’s inception, growth, success, and eventual collapse. Frank, insightful, and essential viewing
- Introduction by Criterion Collection curatorial director Ashley Clark: A warmly made appreciation of the film, it’s place in the gangster/British genre, and the superb performances
- Documentary about the making of the film featuring interviews with Mackenzie and actors Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren: Bloody Business is a legacy featurette that compiles interviews to flesh out the script development, casting process, editing, production troubles, reception, and legacy
- Interviews with Méheux and screenwriter Barrie Keeffe: Touches on the 4K restoration and the work of Hoskins respectively
- Program comparing the soundtracks for the UK and U.S. releases: Hands Across the Ocean: Reshot sequences where the more local expressions were switched out for alternate dialogue to help overseas viewers
- Trailers:
- PLUS: An essay by film critic Ryan Gilbey: Within the liner notes, which also contain information on the films restoration
- New cover by Eric Skillman
The Bottom Line
The Long Good Friday stands out as not just one of the great gangster films, but also as one of the best British features to grace our screens. A triple threat thanks to the smart and prescient script by Barrie Keeffe, savvy direction from John Mackenzie, and a bravura performance from Bob Hoskins. Criterion’s 4K treatment is outstanding, and the extra features, notably the An Accidental Studio documentary, only add to the appeal.
The Long Good Friday is available on 4K-UHD via Criterion now
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Criterion: GUMMO: Korine’s Surreal Debut Finally Gets its Due on 4K UHD
After decades of bare bones Standard Def releases, this week sees Harmony Korine’s writing/directorial debut Gummo finally getting the 4K UHD Criterion treatment, The film flips the script from the metropolitan inhabitants of the big city in Kids, to a more rural story focusing on a lower income impoverished community of Xenia, Ohio, still reeling from the effects of a tornado which devastated their small town. Like Korine’s previous film, Gummo is an unfiltered and unflinchingly bleak glimpse of a group of troubled youth who struggle to survive and find meaning in their day to day existence.
This is all laid out in the film’s opening minutes by Bunny Boy, our guide through the world of Gummo via a vignette that plays out atop a busy overpass. Bunny is walking across traffic via a fenced in bridge in the pouring rain, in nothing but pink rabbit ears, shorts and sneakers. Not only does he throw his body against the fence in an attempt to break free of the prison, but he pisses and spits over the edge at the people below as they travel to their destinations. Thanks to his station atop the bridge, he is stuck, powerless, and forced to watch those enroute to where they need to go. This sets the rather surreal metaphorical space as we are introduced to our protagonists of the film in two groups of teens, two boys and two young women.
The boys – Tummler and Solomon spend their days roaming their streets on their cobbled together BMX bikes hunting cats with BB guns, to sell to the butcher shop. They’ve had a rather rough run at life so far when we meet up with them. Solomon’s father was killed in the Tornado, along with Tummler’s mother. The young women however, seem to be a bit better off and happy as they spend the first half of the film behaving as teen girls would. The back half however has them searching for their black cat, Foot Foot, which seems ro symbolizes innocence that is taken from them. It’s after the cat has vanished that the girls are forced out of their happy home searching for her and come across among their tribulations, a lecherous man who lures them for a drive.
The film’s story unravels in an audio visual collage that flips from a traditional narrative film to something more akin to a visual stream of consciousness with audio snippets, video footage and photographs filling in the cracks of the stories that are unfolding. While some may see just a series of shocking vignettes, all trying to outdo one another, the film shows how escapism takes many forms in communities like these. Drugs, abuse, violence are avenues for escape or relief. It’s something that has the characters literally wallowing in their own filth as they slowly suffocate in the world around them. It’s something I think Korine, who spent his youth growing up in Nashville, Tennessee, experienced first hand and drew from much like Kids.
The film is presented in a new 4K UHD transfer supervised by the director that looks pristine compared to my muddy Warner snapper DVD. While there are no extras on the UHD, the Blu-ray however features a 2024 interview with the director that, while brief, has him discussing the film in a way that feels like he’s actually being honest and candid. There’s a conversation from 1997 between Korine and Herzog shortly after the film’s premiere and Split Screen another interview with Korine this time opposite John Pierson from 2000. This conversation is a 30 minute deep dive into the director’s work up until then. Pierson, while flattering the very young Korine, also questions some of the myths that were just starting to take hold around the transgressive youth, such as Fight Harm, a film that was made up of real fights the director provoked and was never released.
Oddly along with the interviews, there is no sight of the rumored two hours of bonus footage. I actually didn’t believe this was real until the director repurposed 40 minutes into an art installation titled “The Diary of Anne Frank Pt. II.” Of special note for me personally was an essay by Hype Williams on the set, which if you lived through the 90s understood his impact on the music video as a medium that at the time was the starting point for the likes of David Fincher among others.
DIRECTOR-APPROVED 4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:
An essay by film critic Carlos Aguilar and an appreciation by filmmaker Hype Williams
- New 4K digital restoration, supervised and approved by director Harmony Korine, with 2.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
- New interview with Korine
- Conversation from 1997 between Korine and filmmaker Werner Herzog
- Split Screen: Projections episode from 2000 featuring Korine in conversation with host John Pierson
- Trailer
Fans of Korine, like myself, will pick this up no matter what. It’s a rather impressive upgrade from the film’s last incarnation which was a manufacture on demand DVD-R via the Warner Archive. But along with the added clarity, it’s easy to reappraise the film for its exploration of American poverty from the rural perspective, which has the director turning his lens to another outsider community. The other fascinating bit is he wasn’t that much older than his subjects when he made this film or wrote the previous one, which offers a rare authenticity from the director who is so mired in his own lore. What this disc offers is not just a look at the director’s work with that unparalleled clarity, but a clearer look at the film’s director as well, who is presented in a much more lucid state than some of his later interviews.
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TWISTERS 4K UHD: If you Feel It, Buy It!
The closest I’ve witnessed any recent film get to the sheer decadence and relentless entertainment of the 90’s blockbuster was a movie I almost completely passed by, thanks to all the nostalgic cash-ins littering the multiplex recently. After crafting his critical and award darling, Minari, director Lee Isaac Chung went for a followup no one could have guessed, by directing the long in gestation sequel to 1996’s iconic disaster epic Twister, titled aptly enough Twisters. What most didn’t know is that, like his previous semi-autobiographical film, the director also spent a good chunk of his life in Arkansas, which gets about 39 tornadoes a month. So he brought not only the character work he was known for, but a fear and respect for the elements as well. Word of mouth actually got me in the theater for this sleeper hit that proved itself much more than a simple IP cash in.
Like the first film, we start with the trauma origin story of our protagonist, as we see the majority of Kate’s Oklahoma (Daisy Edgar-Jones) friend circle, including her boyfriend, are wiped out while chasing a tornado. The bright eyed highschooler was hoping to test a hypothesis and diffuse the twister using a chemical compound she was workshopping. We then jump sometime later, where Kate has left chasing storms and is now a meteorologist in New York. Thanks to her gift to “feel” the weather, she is called back to Oklahoma by her final surviving friend to attempt to 3D map a twister, using a new technology to hopefully prevent or predict them. This trip home not only of course reinvigorates her love of storm chasing, but she also meets Tyler (Glen Powell), a charismatic adrenaline junkie and social media “tornado wrangler”, who helps her in her quest.
The smartest and biggest gamble Chung made was the fact that Twisters literally has almost nothing to do with its predecessor, but it feels very much cut from the same cloth. The film’s wholesome midwestern vibe doesn’t just manifest itself in its toe tappin’ boot scootin’ country soundtrack, but the romance at the heart of the film between Kate and Tyler that is played more realistically than expected. While there’s a palpable chemistry between the pair, Chung is very conservative in its development and to be honest that works very much in the film’s favor. It’s not just about the raw chemistry either, but how that relationship culminates on screen as trust is forged and feelings are conjured, along with the over the top action you’d expect from a Twister film. The action was probably what surprised me the most with its kinetic nearly non-stop momentum, which was totally on par with the original.
The casting here is damn near perfect, while Daisy Edgar-Jones perfectly embodies this troubled woman struggling to overcome her past a la Helen Hunt from the original, it’s Glen Powell who steals the film right from under his co-star whenever he’s onscreen. This film made me a downright fan of the man who fills the frame with an unwavering swagger that made it hard to deny this guy was a movie star plain and simple. While he starts out the film as this rather obnoxious hyper masculine narcissist cowboy you’d expect after seeing his turn in Maverick, it’s how he slowly wins over both Kate, and the audience that showed some impressive chops turning the character completely around about halfway through the film. Daisy not only manages to hold her own against Powell, surprising enough throughout the film, but manages to destroy expectations, by subverting them in their take of what a relationship in a film has to be.
Twisters was a film I saw twice in theaters, in Dolby and 4DX, which was hands down my favorite theatrical experience of the year. Think a two hour amusement park ride where you’re mercilessly thrown around like a rag doll in tandem with the film. That was the reason its 4DX screenings became a phenomenon this summer selling out for months at a time. That being said, the film actually stands firmly on its own and just moves. Just like the original, Twisters just sprints at a frantic momentum from one set piece to the next, as we have them first trying to map a tornado and then getting pulled into helping a small town out that’s currently being besieged by a twister. While the film does hit that two hour mark, it earns every minute and keep in mind the original film clocked in at an hour and fifty three minutes.
Warner was kind enough to send over a 4k UHD of the film for review and first and foremost the transfer here is very filmic. Twisters was indeed shot on 35mm and the presentation here perfectly captures the grain and warmth you’d want from film with little to no DNR. The film feels very much a pair with the original that was also just released on UHD with both the look and sound. Paired with the film presentation, you have a Dolby Atmos track that is a little more reserved than the Twister remaster, but as aggressive on those lows as you’d expect. There are also actual honest to goodness extras on this disc. Along with deleted scenes (Sorry no kiss here) and a blooper reel, you get featurettes on the making of, the special effects and a look at the vehicles in the film. There is also a day in the life of piece on star Glen Powell, that I can confirm features his pup Brisket, who makes more than a few appearances on the extras.
Full list of Bonus Features:
- GAG REEL
- DELETED SCENES
- TRACKING THE FRONTS: THE PATH OF TWISTERS – Trace the trajectory of TWISTERS from its earliest inception to production and get to know the cast as they lead this look into creating their characters, using science to add authenticity, and working through extreme weather wreaking havoc on set.
- INTO THE EYE OF THE STORM – Discover how TWISTERS blends practical and visual effects to turn nature’s most destructive forces into entertaining thrills.
- GLEN POWELL: ALL ACCESS – Glen Powell provides a private tour of a day in his life on the TWISTERS set.
- FRONT SEAT TO A CHASE – Strap in with the cast and professional storm chasers as they brave the elements to track tornados in Oklahoma.
- VOICE OF A VILLAIN* – Hear the creation of the film’s deafening howls with a seat in the studio where the audio team mixes unexpected sounds to give the storms a new dimension of depth.
- TRICKED-OUT TRUCKS – Buckle up for a wild ride in the film’s custom vehicles fitted with unique features ranging from rocket launchers to advanced radar tech.
- FEATURE COMMENTARY WITH DIRECTOR LEE ISAAC CHUNG
Twisters decimated my expectations and was a perfect popcorn film. It’s got thrills, it’s got romance, it’s got heart and it’s a ton of fun to watch and even revisit. It’s a summer blockbuster in the purest sense and that’s not easy to do and Twisters makes it seem almost effortless, even the third time around. The presentation here is also pretty stellar, not only is the film presented in a gorgeous transfer, but there are even extras and a director’s commentary, in the year of our lord 2024 – how rare is that on a big studio release? That says it all about Twisters, it’s not just a sequel made to bank on nostalgia, but a new story that the director legitimately wanted to tell and that’s why this film feels like it does, because it was done for all the right reasons and when that happens you get Twisters.
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October’s Two Cents Found Footage HORROR Journey Continues into THE HIGH DESERT
Two Cents is a Cinapse original column akin to a book club for films. The Cinapse team curates the series and contribute their “two cents” using a maximum of 200-400 words. Guest contributors and comments are encouraged, as are suggestions for future picks. Join us as we share our two cents on films we love, films we are curious about, and films we believe merit some discussion. Would you like to be a guest contributor or programmer for an upcoming Two Cents entry? Simply watch along with us and/or send your pitches or 200-400 word reviews to [email protected].
As Julian noted last week, his Cinapse journey began in 2014 with a piece on Noroi: the Curse. A decade later, his debut audio commentary is included on Noroi’s first Western release as part of the J-Horror Rising box set from Arrow Films. To celebrate, Ed invited him to curate this month’s Two Cents, focusing on personal recommendations for found footage horror. This week, we tackle our second faux documentary, this one done in convincing true crime doc fashion. While I’m sure director Dutch Marich would surely find our previous faux doc entry – Lake Mungo – to be influential, it’s clear that Marich draws most of his inspiration from true crime films and television shows. In fact, he notes (below) just how influential the true crime shows of his youth were to the format and content of the Horror in the High Desert franchise. So without further ado, I present this week’s selection…
The Pick: Horror in the High Desert (2021)
As a special treat, this week’s film introduction comes from the filmmaker himself, the great Dutch Marich. After you trek out to the desert with us, we invite you to continue your travels with Horror in the High Desert 2: Minerva on Tubi and Horror in the High Desert 3: Firewatch on Amazon Prime Video. Special thanks to Dutch for sharing his inspiration for one of the best faux documentary horror films any of us will get to experience.
I have always been a huge fan of true crime TV shows. They were always on in the background while I was growing up. My Mom always had on Unsolved Mysteries, Untold Stories of the ER, and Dateline. When true crime exploded in recent years I became fascinated with a show called Disappeared. Every episode chronicles someone who has vanished under bizarre circumstances. Every time I watched an episode of any of these shows I always thought to myself, “how frightening would it be if we saw from their perspective what happened to them in the end?” And that is how Horror in the High Desert was conceived.
The format of a true crime show is such an interesting and unique way to tell a story as a filmmaker. There must always be justification for why the camera is rolling and why we are seeing what we are seeing. I think it is that framework and really committing to the specific style of storytelling that lures people in and has them at full attention by the time Gary’s footage from his last night alive starts rolling on screen.
Just want to say thank you to everyone who’s been along on the Horror in the High Desert journey and that I can’t wait to share the rest of the series with you all! Always remember: Just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they can’t see you.
Featured Guests
Horror in the High Desert, for me, is honestly the jumping off point for my own career. It means more to me than any other found footage film out there, simply because Dutch took the time to talk to a budding director and walk me through the trials and tribulations of indie film. He shared a screener for this film with me before it came out to the public and I’m sitting there at the end, during that final 20 minutes, and I’m covering my face, peeking through my fingers, and just struck with visceral fear.
My eyes are scanning the screen for anything he’s got hidden in the frame… I was legitimately terrified and I remember thinking: I haven’t felt this way for a big budget horror film since I was a child, and here’s this guy, this regular guy who was chatting with me online about indie film, making the scariest fucking movie I’ve seen in a decade. I was also almost completely convinced that the film was real at first, because the initial 30 minutes felt straight from a gripping documentary I’d have normally found on the Discovery Channel or A&E, etc. The characters speak naturally, they don’t feel scripted or forced, and they feel like real, homegrown people. This is what a small town feels like and he absolutely nailed it.
Being a Nevada boy myself and living here in the High Desert, this one also hit me especially hard, as I’ve gone hiking and hunting and fishing in places just like Gary Hinge trekked through, and so I’d say HITHD kind of did for the desert what Jaws did for the water: I will forever think twice about going out there alone. This is a standout film in the world of found footage and I couldn’t be more thrilled to say I have befriended Dutch over the years and get to regularly talk with him. His brain works on a different level when it comes to creating terror and suspense and I cannot wait to watch him continue leading us down this horrifying path he’s set us out on. If I can one day make something half as scary as what Dutch did, I’ll consider myself a complete success.
One of the greatest contributions that found footage gave to cinema is that it opened an entirely different way to make movies. Once reserved for studios and backlots, and, even at its barest, a crew of people and a mountain of equipment, the arrival of found footage meant that any joe shmoe with a camcorder picked up at Best Buy could not only create a film, but a film that people would actively seek out to watch.
As such, there’s been a swell of found footage features flooding the market for over 25 years now, which has led to a lot of shot-over-the-weekend-with-pocket-change cinema out there. Enough that a horror fan can get lost, and honestly, bored real quick trying to find the diamonds in the rough. So, a found footage film really needs to bring something special to the table.
Enter 2021’s Horror In The High Desert. Made for pennies, featuring actors that range from local theater to “may have just been pulled in off the street”, there is a certain charm to the pure DIY nature on display. We follow along with a group of talking heads as they explain the disappearance of survivalist Gary Hinge in the Nevada Desert. And, hoo boy, do they explain, and explain, and explain. You’re going to hear the same information relayed more than a few times, as the film spins its wheels as hard as it can to make it to the 3rd act reveal.
For those willing to brave more than a few “some people thought it was aliens” or “he would never park his truck like that”, though, you’ll be rewarded, as the film shifts into Gary’s final night in the desert. Seen entirely in infrared, we watch as Gary is stalked by a deformed man through sage brush and boulders. It is a genuinely terrifying 20 minutes, as we are dipped into darkness and silence, only a grainy silhouette, or the warped recording of a woman singing, or the sounds of shifting gravel to tell us where his pursuer may be. A jarring, and welcomed, shift that ends the movie on a terrifying bang.
For many, these type of microbudget found footage films might seem like an exercise in patience, but for those who are willing to meet these films on their wavelength, there is a whole world of underseen gems like this.
The Team
I chose Horror in the High Desert for this series because much like the lo-fi, high-concept later work of Koji Shiraishi, Dutch Marich’s trilogy (especially this first film) nails the scrappy, cobbled-together tone of modern citizen journalism or streaming investigative docs.
This first entry, pieced together during the peak of COVID, uses its sparse resources to its advantage, pitting its isolated talking-head entries against one another as relatives and friends blame each other for the disappearance of hiker Gary Hinge. For the most part, it’s an earnest exploration of an obscure local disappearance–and High Desert’s strongest moments aren’t rooted in the “horror” of its title, but the instinct in these cases to lash out at others in severe moments of grief and uncertainty. Reflecting on my own professional true crime research experiences, it rings uncomfortably true how sometimes these cases are hindered by those who most want to solve them.
It’s fascinating how Marich and his cast create such a strong composite character in Gary. While he’s never able to give his own talking head thoughts, his brief appearances via his YouTube uploads and the conflicting anecdotes given about him give him an energy akin to Twin Peaks’ Laura Palmer or Rebecca of Hitchcock/Du Maurier fame. As the film progresses, we double back on our initial impressions of Gary, allowing Marich to explore challenging themes of bullying and the closeted Queer experience in the digital age.
These are brief but vital moments in High Desert. In one, a stray lead in the central investigator’s efforts reveals that Gary began a romantic relationship with another man after connecting on Facebook Marketplace, which was as hidden from Gary’s close relatives and friends as his hiking YouTube page. In the other, the digital antagonism towards Gary on his page by strangers fuels his drive to head back into the dangers of the desert to document the mysterious shed, leading to his alluded demise. Both plot elements provide a mature evolution of major found footage tropes–the justification of filming amid peril, and what documenters choose to leave out of their narratives–both also inseparable from the construction of High Desert’s digital form.
It’s fitting, then, that the scariest things in High Desert are beings totally antithetical to the digital world, scrapping together shelters in crumbling ghost towns away from electricity (let alone technology), and still able to tap into some primeval spookiness that the modern era has long forgotten. Like Gary, they exist only as digital ghosts–but remind us that there are still ancient, unknowable things to fear for all the progress we’ve made.
While not as immediately gripping and rich as my experience watching Lake Mungo for this series, I enjoyed and appreciated several elements of Horror in the High Desert. For one thing, I ended up watching the movie on my phone, on a plane, and it still managed to pull me in and even by the end it managed to frighten me. No small feat under the unfortunate conditions under which I took it in. I also felt this must have been a killer idea for a covid-era feature in which the setting of the film was able to be something pretty unconventional, and which never even really required two actors to be on screen together at the same time. I’ve read nothing about the movie and know very little about it, but it felt like something that came out of that severely limited time in all of our lives but also turned that into a challenge to rise to, managing to engross even against those odds. It’s clever, if slight, and I’d at least be open to checking out the sequels.
I’ve been a found footage junkie for sometime, but a few years ago I began to discover a new crop of incredible young directors doing a variety of POV style films, Dutch Marich among them. Along with the aid of the yearly UFF lineups, following folks like Dutch, Dillon Brown (who contributed his thoughts above), and several others really opened me up to a whole new world of these filmmakers making awesome work on nearly nonexistent budgets. The DIY punk in me was naturally inclined to root these folks one, but – more than that – I genuinely love a ton of the films from this new crop of found footage acolytes.
The Horror in the High Desert series is one I point to for many folks who claim they don’t really like the style… especially if I know these folks to be true crime fans. Not only is the story compelling, but Dutch directs the shit out of this faux documentary. Netflix should hire him to helm some of their upcoming true crime docs, as far as I’m concerned. Then again, I want him to keep pumping these films out, so I’m happy if they don’t snatch him up quite yet.
This is a can’t miss entry, so do yourself a favor and make sure you watch if you haven’t.
OCTOBER: Found Footage Horror Curated by Julian Singleton
Next week, we wrap up with the inspiration for this month’s theme… join us in celebrating one of Julian’s favorites and celebrating Julian’s first commentary! And those who aren’t interested in sharing their thoguhts, we thank you for following along and hope you’re able to watch in anticipation of our final entry for spooky season…
October 28 – Noroi: the Curse (Shudder – 1 hour 55 minutes)
