whoa.

V/H/S: Review

V/H/S is a horror movie in the found footage genre. This movie is actually a compilation of different short films featuring footage of strange and disturbing paranormal activity. Six different directors took part in the making of this movie, this is evident because each short piece of found footage has a completely different feel to it. This lent to the idea that these were a part of a man's extensive collection of gory videos. Its clear that this film gives thanks to the genre it stems from, exercising many of the the different themes that have been executed, before and throughout the genres growth. This film is not only aware of its roots, it also pushes the genre forward. Taking it places it has not yet been, yet still exploring and building upon the same path that has been expanding for nearly the past two decades.

The main story arc is centered around a team of criminals that is sent into a supposedly empty house to retrieve a VHS tape. Upon entering the house they're confronted with a corpse and an extensive collection of tapes.


Amateur Night directed by David Bruckner is the first video in this anthology.
The idea of using a hidden camera in a pair of glasses was inventive, it let the story skip over the mandated mention of the camera by everyone being filmed that's so common in found footage. The girl, Lily was inherently creepy from the beginning as she kept saying, "I like you" to the camera guy, actually I think that's all she said. Nearing the end of the story when she nearly gets gang banged by the coked out dude there's a sense of sympathy built up for sure. By the time she attacks the first guy I was pretty sick of his character and rooted for her anyway. The cameraman refusing the succubus' advances, making her feel inadequate was a pretty hilarious take on erectile dysfunction. The last scene was beautiful, and a creative way to use the camera.
These characters were probably the most believable of all of the shorts in the anthology.

Second Honeymoon directed by Ti West was the second video in this anthology.
This is a video chronicling a young married couple's vacation in the American mid-west. The whole story was pretty weak, and the characters weren't very likable at all, but I also didn't dislike them, they were just pretty boring people. I guess their blandness should have made them seem more real, but they just seemed boring and were out shined by the beauty of the Grand Canyon during their visit, and all of the scenery really. The fortune telling machine's elaborate fortune about betrayal was pretty telling, and gave away the ending. The murder scene at the end of this short was pretty gruesome, but that and the beautiful scenery of the American mid west were the saving graces of this story.

Tuesday the 17th was directed by Glenn McQuaid and was the third video in this series of shorts.
This video reminded me of so many standard campy horror movies of the past. The teenagers weren't the best actors. The repeated creepy announcements of Wendy (the driver of the car) were corny, but the feel of the whole video was corny, and the campiness seemed purposeful. The idea of a murderer that can't be caught on camera is interesting, and really gives the camera a purpose in the story, but Wendy's purpose for being out there doesn't add up. I thought that this short film was fun and campy, but the purpose behind the trip could have been a little more fleshed out.

The Sick Thing That Happened When Emily Was Younger is the fourth video and was directed by Joe Swanberg.
I think that finding reasons for the camera to be in the scene is the most important part of this genre, and a webcam was a pretty clever idea. The build up of the story line and the character's relationship flowed very naturally. The horror element was dealt with realistically and candidly. The plot twist near the end of the short was pretty surprising and confusing. I had no idea what the fetus had to do with anything, and I've never heard of an abortion happening through the spine, but the fear factor was there and it was an enjoyable scare. The unanswered questions were of the sort that are fun to ponder over after the fact, I didn't feel ripped off by the loose ends.

10/31/98 was written and directed by Radio Silence and is the final video in the series.
The story was confusing, but the special effects were convincing. I wasn't sure if the characters in this video were the same as the characters from the main story arc. The story seemed kind of rushed and like it was added as an aside. It didn't have very much substance, but it served its purpose.

Labels: film, found footage, horror, movies, reviews, V/H/S

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor

       I've been re-watching Doctor Who from the 2005 series, starring the ninth Doctor, played by Christopher Eccleston, onward. I never really gave this Doctor a chance, mostly because Rose Tyler irks me a bit, but also because it just never caught me like the later episodes did. During this re-watching of the series. I have come to love this ninth Doctor. He is so much darker and more moody than subsequent incarnations, making it more believable when he gets serious. He can say things like, "What is life? Life is easy; a quirk of matter, nature's way of preserving flesh." and it doesn't seem goofy or out of character, they just flow out, almost unnoticed.
     
       Steven Moffat only wrote one two-part episode to be starred in by this doctor ("The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances") which is disappointing to me. I think that Moffat's writing and Eccleston's dark demeanor meshed so well. All of the silly dystopian episodes of the 2005 series didn't suit Eccleston's depiction of the Doctor well. All in all, this rant was leading to the conclusion that I'm glad to have given the ninth doctor another chance. Watching his war-torn, hard shell soften as he opened up to the silly humans in his life was a fun experience. Now it's time to watch last episode of the season that I've been putting off because I don't want to see him go. I truly wish that he would have stayed on for a little longer, if only to see him spout out more gloomy, existential Moffat lines. 

Labels: bbc, doctor, doctorwho, reviews, sciencefiction, who, writing

Black Hole: Review

Burns's artwork is amazing, the detail that he was able to achieve using only black ink was fantastic. It took him a decade to finish these stories before compiling them into a novel, and the fact that he was able to achieve this level of consistency is impressive. I should have read this book while I was still in high school, as it would have affected me a lot more profoundly, instead of just making me feel nostalgic. The overwhelming sexual imagery all throughout the book provided a more realistic glimpse into the mind of a teenager. The dream sequences are filled with Freudian imagery and the sicknesses themselves seem to be a manifestation of the revenge of the repressed. All in all I thought this book was extremely entertaining and beautifully illustrated. Definitely a thought provoking and disturbing piece of graphic literature

school n stuff

I’m so lucky to be able to further my education. I am so lucky to have a beautiful little campus to go to. I am so lucky to have engaging and exciting professors that value my uneducated opinion (or politely pretend to).
I had two tests yesterday; one in religions studies, and one in political science. I have never been so intimidated by a series of questions in my life, that political science test was hard. The professor is as old as time itself and wears the silliest tye and shirt combinations I have ever seen in my life, today it was a paisley tye paired with a vertical stripe shirt, under an olive colored blazer.

There and Back Again and Again and Again

December 14th, 2012. I have been waiting for this day for years. This movie(s) have been rumored about for so long, I am almost afraid to see it (them). The fact that Peter Jackson has decided to  make THREE movies for this one book is slightly worrisome, but I can deal with that. More Middle Earth action for me, right?
I’ve heard through the rumor mill that Peter Jackson has decided to shoot the Hobbit in 48fps (frames per second) as opposed to the standard 24fps. If you have ever seen a movie with motion smoother, you’re aware of how beautiful the higher frame rate can make nature look, but you’ve also seen how creepily realistic the characters themselves look. Motion smoother makes me feel like a spectator on the set.
Peter Jackson shared a ten minute clip at Cinema Con and the viewers were not pleased with what they saw. The New Zealand landscape was beautiful and stunning when shot at a higher frame rate, but the effect just didn’t work when used on characters in costume.  Because of this controversy Peter Jackson is going to release the movie in standard frame rate to the mass public and only release his 48fps piece in select theaters.

crawling

^Scrawling 

this book is closer to closing because of
my crawling and scrawling
on the pages
flipping them with my feet as I go
pen in one hand
feebly scribbling
trying to capture these thoughts
before they are
 out of my mind
out of my grasp.
 Barely willing anymore,
but the pages flip
they flip if I scrawl or if I don’t
tugged faster and faster by time, pages
flipping me over and under the days.
 Some pages draw only a line from me,
using my pen for leverage
making a clean line across the page
those days
I stand and live

Labels: nonsense, poetry, writing

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I like to write about what I like. This is where I voice my opinions on things that I don't know a lot about.

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