Month: April 2020

Black Christmas [AKA Silent Night, Evil Night] (1974, dir. Bob Clark)

A police investigation begins when a female student goes missing. Influential proto-slasher movie with giallo touches, this twice-remade movie has aspects of the cop procedural as well as originating several horror genre tropes. It stands up pretty well, with well-rounded characters and a none-more-70s visual sensibility.

Vivarium (2019, dir. Lorcan Finnegan)

A young couple are trapped in a show home on a maze-like estate. Absurdist SF horror piece that’s well-designed and well-acted but doesn’t have anywhere to go; this may well be the point, but the film makes this (riffing on Blue Velvet) in its opening titles. 90-odd minutes might be too much of a thing for some.

The Gentlemen [AKA Toff Guys] (2019, dir. Guy Ritchie)

A London-based drug dealer’s empire is threatened by rival forces and a blackmailer. Fourth and about the best of Ritchie’s gangland comic fantasies. Familiar ingredients and approach, but handled with verve throughout. Everyone’s in on the joke, not least standouts Colin Farrell and Hugh Grant.

Black Christmas [AKA Black X-Mas] (2006, dir. Glen Morgan)

One Christmas, an escaped killer returns to his home, now a sorority house. This first (loose) remake of the 1974 genre outlier is somewhat confusingly-organised and doesn’t hit the same gleeful stride as the same team’s Final Destination movies, but at least commits with some confident direction, gore, and a couple of weird moments.

Black Christmas (2019, dir. Sophia Takal)

Sorority members are attacked over Charistmas break. This second remake of the 1974 giallo/slasher classic takes only its setting, adding a new story. Unfortunately, it’s really not a good one. A shame, as the film wants to say something, but can’t find a way to. The cast – especially the reliable Poots – do what they can.

The Day Shall Come (2019, dir. Chris Morris)

A deluded preacher is set up by the FBI as an active terrorist. While there are some solid performances and a few great moments, this is a bit of a mess, lacking the focus and heart of the superficially-similar Four Lions. A shame, as there’s talent on display, and Morris is a dark genius.

Extraction (2020, dir. Sam Hargrave)

A suicidal mercenary takes on a kidnap extraction job. Overlong but stirring action drama with three (count ’em) splendid sustained combat/chase sequences. No surprises whatsoever plot-wise, but this is vigorous stuff, played commendably straight by all. 15 minutes trimmed, and it’d have been a stone-cold classic.

The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019, dir. Tyler Nilson & Michael Schwartz)

A young man with Down Syndrome escapes his assisted living facility; he teams up with a troubled crab fisherman. A straightforward but nevertheless charming and unsentimental comedy-drama road movie with wrestling and a whiff of Huck and Tom about it. Fine soundtrack, and a cast in depth to die for. No surprises, but fun.

Tron: Legacy (2010, dir. Joseph Kosinski)

Thirty years later, Flynn’s son is scanned into the same computer universe his long-missing father found in the first film. Well-designed and with a super techno/disco soundtrack, this is a po-faced mess that can’t even sustain the daft people-as-programs conceit of its predecessor. Dull and overlong, though with OK support from a glam Michael Sheen.

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Tron (1982, dir. Steven Lisberger)

A hacker is scanned into his former employer’s computer network; a parallel world awaits. Odd SF/fantasy mashing up evil tech corps and voguish videogames. Simplistic and weird, with some still-stunning design and a cool mix of early CG, traditional animation, and David Warner doing his best. A sequel followed in 2010.

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