Going in to pissed off fan boy mode in 3, 2, 1: So, here’s a history lesson in case you wanted it or not. Elektra, pre-Hollywoodization, was a beautiful but incredibly vicious warrior. She had depth, and personality and humanity, and was forced to turn against her beliefs when Bullseye, the psychotic killer murdered her beloved father in front of her eyes. Elektra blamed Daredevil for not helping when he could have and trained with the Hand to become a warrior. She returned to stalk Daredevil and fell in love with him. She was killed at the hands of Bullseye and returned as an undead warrior, more vicious than ever. All of this made possible by Frank Miller.
Tag Archives: Thriller
Masters of Horror: Chocolate
This latest episode is not so much scary and frightening as it is often amusing and fascinating. For this week’s episode, director, writer, and creator Mick Garris brings to life one of his own stories. I was often thinking back to “Twilight Zone” for this installment as it deals with unknown identities and sudden powers that arise from circumstances. As little expectations I had for “Chocolate” it ends up as a very solid episode. Henry Thomas is very much in the vein of Norman Bates here as a prudish young man named Jamie who works as a scientist synthesizing smells and tastes for products. One night after a vivid dream he awakes with the strong taste of chocolate in his mouth and begins to wonder if the dream was an actual figment of his imagination.
Out of Time (2003)
Though much of the film relies on lapses in logic and sequences that are just utterly hard to swallow, the performances are what sell this in the end. Mendes gives a pretty good performance as the ex-wife of Washington’s character who becomes a sort of antagonist, and makes things very difficult, while Sanaa Lathan and Dean Cain are very menacing. John Billingsley is tolerable as the obligatory comic relief, and Washington delivers a very good performance as Lee. Though much of the scenes rely on plot devices, Washington convinces us of the tension with his panicky performance.
Vampires: The Turning (2005)
Trilogies are perhaps the most unusual presence in filmmaking because there’s rarely ever a chance that all three films within the triangle will be good. Take for example the “Vampires” trilogy which I can imagine that the producers asked to add the moniker of “Vampires” to the film to make it a trilogy. But in any case it’s a trilogy and a sad one at that. “The Turning” ends up becoming more stupid than actually awful, and I’ve always thought series were supposed to lengthen the story, and not shy away from it. “Vampires” originally made by Carpenter was a very strong vampire film, then there was “Los Muertos” which was a really bad (A vampire munching on a man’s genitals? Please) but enjoyable bit of vampire fodder, and then there’s… this.
Down (The Shaft) (2001)
There’s nothing like a tale about a man-made machine turning against man that made it and becoming more superior and turning against man. It’s another “Frankenstein” allegory, that continues on and on with this preposterous and utterly illogical thriller called “The Shaft”. With a mixture of “The Mangler” and “Ghost in the Machine'”, there’s the psychotic elevator which takes on a mind of its own. With a good director, this would have been a murky, grim, and often frightening tale that touched on claustrophobia, agoraphobia, acrophobia, and taphephobia, but that’s not what’s given to the audience. Imagine the frights here along the line of Disney’s “Tower of Terror”, because that’s as scary as this ridiculous movie ever really gets. The mood is surprisingly light and airy, and ends up feeling more like an eighties B movie than something that actually intends on telling a story.
Masters of Horror: Jenifer
The story of Jenifer is the tale of the ultimate jealous girlfriend, who is a subservient, but very jealous person who claims her mates and then clings on to them serving what she feels they desire. To the monster Jenifer, she sees eating humans as eliminating rivals and basically giving her mate her own gifts. The story not only confronts the whole aspect of this grotesque girl, but examines the lolita-esque attraction with this man who–in spite of her face–still possesses a sexual obsession with her. As per Argento’s style, the tension is ripe from the very beginning, as the mystery Argento usually works on mounts. And there’s a great amount of gore that Nicotero works on including some genitalia munching (literally), and gorging on innards that never cuts away. So–this is all they gave Dario Argento to work with, eh?
Saw II (2005)
I liked “Saw” a lot. In spite of plot holes, lapses in logic, and a horrible sub-plot/performance by Danny Glover, I thought “Saw” was a very nihilistic simple thriller that really ended up being one of the best horror thrillers I’ve seen in years. Either way, when talks of “Saw 2” arose, I was optimistic if not a little annoyed. Sequels are rarely ever as good as the original, but with “Saw 2” I was pleasantly surprised and shocked, and a little nauseated. “Saw 2” takes its formula and amps it up to about eleven with a film that ends up becoming an eloquent study in madness and sadism, and explores the true lengths in which man will go to stay alive. What would you do to stay alive?