Junky and cheap film about an amusement park being taken over by the mob and the clown who wants revenge, lurching uncomfortably between comedy and exploitation, the only redemption of this clunker is that it’s too weird to ignore. The feeling of being seven and finding some creepy weird movie playing on Comedy Central at 2:00 AM is overwhelming. D
Not as good as the original, but is remarkably weirder and more surprising. As far as moves to make quick and cheap cash-in films go, making a film that is a full THIRD flashbacks to the last film (complete with flashbacks within that flashback) is pretty ballsy. Luckily the film has pleasures other than it’s balls. Like it’s eyebrow acting. I don’t know what alternate dimension they pulled Eric Freeman from, but he’s easily one of the most compellingly bad actors I’ve ever seen. It’s a testament to film’s weirdness that when the famous “Garbage Day” moment comes, it feels more par for the course than non-sequitur. B
Not surprised at Spielberg’s brutality here, necessarily (after all, he is the same man who went on to make the incredibly traumatic War of the Worlds), but by his ambiguity. At first glance he’s trying to have his cake and eat it too by tempering the gauntlet Jim is put through with a sense of adventure and whimsy, but the bombing run on the prison camp was the Rosetta Stone for me*: it’s actually a film about survival through denial. Jim has to contextualize his experiences through the filter of his adventure comics because otherwise he’d be catatonic with fear, grief and guilt. But the darkness is always creeping in. It’s a challenging and brilliant movie and it never gives the viewer easy catharsis. Even the “happy” ending feels more like a funeral than a reunion (hence the final shot).
But it is also an incredibly exciting and fun movie, particularly any time John Malkovich is on-screen. Malkovich’s commitment elevates his character and, often, the film itself, turning simple jokes like “I’d bet my Life on it.” into incredible catharsis. Pretty much my only complaint is that it’s a little long in the tooth. But I can easily see that changing upon a rewatch. A-
*The other key moment for me is when Jim and his parents are driving through downtown Shanghai to go to the party. The scene starts from Jim’s perspective, as the camera floats past well-framed vignettes like the establishing shot of an Indiana Jones movie. Locals bartering, fireworks, exotic wares; the stuff of kids’ adventures. Then the orphan is beaten by a cop and the tone changes as it switches to his dad’s side of the car. Suddenly the camera pulls back and we see the squalor, the grotesque disparity in wealth between the Graham’s and the locals, the bubbling tension. Fantastic moment that sums up the tonal shifts that the rest of the film will play with.
Abysmal latter-day Blake Edwards movie. Almost entirely unworthy of remembering except for John Larroquette (who at least appears to be trying his hardest to draw blood from this stone of a script) as a weird yuppie/stalker hybrid and Phil Hartman, who is incapable of being unfunny. One of those movies that was a hit at the time, but rightfully forgotten. I imagine in 26 years someone will have a similar experience watching We’re the Millers that I did here. D
…nope, this is way way worse. Imagine a film that plays like an hour-long version of America’s Funniest Home Videos, except for snuff films. Sounds like a pretty good premise, right? Now imagine it’s only like, 4 videos, and they all are the worst, overlong Grand Guignol-inspired comedy sketches ever. Total dreck. The only reason I even finished it was because it was short, I own it, and I so rarely have a chance to give movies my lowest possible rating. F
Terrible execution, but the premise is so great I’m sure Hollywood (or even larger independent studios) were kicking themselves for years for not coming up with it. In 1987 there was a lot to mine out of a movie about town that was so obsessed with renting slasher movies that it starts to film it’s own snuff films, itself shot on videotape. It’s creepy, it’s formally inventive and, given it’s tributes to other horror films, a great opportunity for a fun tongue-in-cheek tone. Even the idea of the town getting slowly better and more sophisticated with the stories it tells around the murders is a great touch.
Unfortunately, Video Violence doesn’t really take advantage of any of this. Horrible acting and pacing suck all the fun and energy out of this movie. The worst part is the premise is so of it’s time that it’s hard to imagine it will ever be remade, so the great premise was squandered. I can only hope it’s sequel is better… C-
Pretty much a perfect action film, a slightly formless and flabby section in the middle aside. I love how uncool Robocop is. He’s easily the weirdest and dorkiest action hero of the 80’s, and probably the only one that subsists entirely on baby food. Verhoeven is the master of the smart dumb movie, and that allows this film is able to have it’s satirical cake and eat it too. A-
The opening 40 minutes or so remain some of the most potent horror filmmaking I’ve ever seen. After seeing Upstream Color the night before, the way John Carpenter’s editing and score work in tandem to create an inescapable sense of momentum and (in some parts of Upstream Color, but in all of this) dread reminded me of Shane Carruth’s work there. I don’t imagine there are many other composer/director combos out there but it does make me want to investigate others to see how it affects their films’ structures as well.
Imagery of fire ants, maggots, windows full of worms, and immobile crowds of homeless staring into windows are incredibly effective (though I do have to agree with Gabe Powers that the latter being lumped in with invertebrates is pretty distasteful) as is the recurring nightmare transmission. The cumulative effect of all this, along with the convincing scientific tone, is really tremendous. Tremendous enough to excuse the admittedly weak climax and moments of hokey cheesiness. B+
The ticking tension of the first two acts is pretty incredible, but the third act is a total let down. Still, it gets more right than wrong, and in it’s hodge-podge of slasher, zombie, and satanic tropes results in something totally new. B
Lindsay Crouse’s flat acting (and a frankly baffling ending) aside, this is a pretty perfect movie. Mamet’s filmmaking confidence wasn’t quite where it be with something like Homicide, but his script is dynamite and his casting even better. I can’t imagine any actor delivering “out of your motherfucking mind” like Ricky Jay, hitting the “g” as hard as he can. A-
Martha Marcy Nash and Young 