CiG
Harbinger of Metal
The banter was great you softcock.
You said there wasn't any choreography, not that it's not as good as The Raid 2 or whatever. But you say you're not really a fan of the genre so fair enough.
The Official Movie Thread
- Thread starter Manic Ferocity
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The banter was great you softcock.
You said there wasn't any choreography, not that it's not as good as The Raid 2 or whatever. But you say you're not really a fan of the genre so fair enough.
Einherjar86
Active Member
This could just be my memory failing me, but when do we see the devil in the first fifteen minutes...? Sorry if there's some massive detail I'm forgetting, but I don't recall seeing anything that explicit; there's disturbing and creepy imagery in the first fifteen minutes, but nothing that announces itself as the devil.
I call it slow-burn because, for me, it set up a distressing scenario and proceeded to introduce a series of increasingly unsettling events. And there are at least a couple times when a lesser film would have included some kind of jump scare, whereas this film instead was content to leave its viewers with the lingering feeling (or expectation) that something's amiss. I don't think the early parts of the film are horrific as much as disturbing. The moments that stick out to me as horrific don't materialize until probably halfway--but again, I could be misremembering.
As far as the siblings staying, I do recall them saying that their parents wanted to die in the house. Honoring these kinds of wishes can make people do irrational things. And I don't necessarily disagree with you that it's a "white" thing.
For me, I enjoyed the first half or so of the film because I was still under the impression that the narrative would reveal a more developed explanation for what's going on at the farm: a family curse, some violent past, etc. I felt it was a slow-burn because the audience was left to ponder this question. It isn't until the final act that we realize there's no big reveal; and I wasn't impressed with the "sometimes the devil just wants someone" conceit.
I call it slow-burn because, for me, it set up a distressing scenario and proceeded to introduce a series of increasingly unsettling events. And there are at least a couple times when a lesser film would have included some kind of jump scare, whereas this film instead was content to leave its viewers with the lingering feeling (or expectation) that something's amiss. I don't think the early parts of the film are horrific as much as disturbing. The moments that stick out to me as horrific don't materialize until probably halfway--but again, I could be misremembering.
As far as the siblings staying, I do recall them saying that their parents wanted to die in the house. Honoring these kinds of wishes can make people do irrational things. And I don't necessarily disagree with you that it's a "white" thing.
For me, I enjoyed the first half or so of the film because I was still under the impression that the narrative would reveal a more developed explanation for what's going on at the farm: a family curse, some violent past, etc. I felt it was a slow-burn because the audience was left to ponder this question. It isn't until the final act that we realize there's no big reveal; and I wasn't impressed with the "sometimes the devil just wants someone" conceit.
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
You don't remember when the goats are acting scared and you see this figure mingling among them? That happens in the first 5 minutes, sooner than I even remembered haha.
Well within the first 30 minutes we see the devil, we hear the creaking floorboards and the door open, we see the mother chop her own fingers off aggressively and then she is found hanging from the ceiling.
I'm not actually saying it's a white thing, just that it is the meme that it's a white thing made into a movie. I think the average white family would be the fuck outta there. I don't personally think honouring those wishes justify the shit they ignored in order to remain there is all. Especially after the mother is dead by Tuesday after chopping her hand up.
This is what interested me too and a big part of why I stuck it out until the end, but at the same time I felt like I could see the ending coming.
I'm probably coming across as a pedantic fuck but god damn, this movie really had a lot of problems.
Einherjar86
Active Member
Totally, I guess I just didn't assume it was the devil...? Is there a reason this seemed obvious to you?
I certainly thought it could be some sort of devil/demonic entity, but didn't see this as the definite explanation for what was happening.
I feel like these occurrences can lend themselves to a number of readings, though.
I suppose I should qualify "slow-burn" to mean that the narrative presents as though it's going to develop an explanation for its events slowly, over an extended narrative period. But in hindsight, given there is no real explanation, maybe I should reevaluate my use of the term. I would still contend, however, that the film doesn't verify a demonic angle until later in the narrative.
Sorry, I misunderstood. But you don't think dementia or other ailments of advanced age would be issues here? This is what would come to my mind first if I were in their situation--not that my parents had been possessed by the devil.
I think we have to remember that although we know we're watching a horror film, the characters have no idea they're in a horror film. We shouldn't expect them to behave in ways that we would with our extra-diegetic knowledge.
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CiG
Harbinger of Metal
Well sure it's not self-evident that it's the devil, but it's something evil is the point. This movie is much less a slow burn as much as it is a pretty immediate plunge imo.
I'm not really making an argument specific to demonism, my fault for using those terms when I should have just said supernatural. The daughter sees her father spazzing out while she's in the shower pretty early in the film too, and there's a boat load of jumpscares throughout. I guess when I think of "slow burn" I think of subtlety and a more conservative use of escalation. I definitely don't think this film did that.
Sure I understand that and I think you'd have a point if I were saying it's unrealistic that they didn't leave after they found their mother dead, however my beef is that all of this has happened by Tuesday morning and there's a bunch of crazy shit they experience between that morning and the afternoon a doctor says they would kill their father if they moved him and my suspension of disbelief was at breaking point somewhere around there lmfao. Seeing her possessed father while she was in the shower, seeing a spider crawl out of his mouth, seeing your dead mother outside floating, the goat/lamb massacre, the creepy possessed priest, their mother's diary, her sudden turn to religion and collecting crosses, there's just so much shit and still they just... chilled at the house. Even at one point doing the typical horror trope of separating at night because the son just had to look after some lamb. It just got really retarded at some point imo.
Einherjar86
Active Member
It sounds like I should watch it again--or not, haha.
I also agree that by the time the guy sees his mother floating outside, leaving should present itself as a serious option. The daughter seeing her father in the shower is a bit more ambiguous for me because I can believe that maybe she thought he'd legitimately gotten out of bed and was walking around. Not necessarily anything supernatural about that--maybe she was hoping it was some sign of recovery.
But overall I agree with you that the resolution is a letdown and by the second half it makes little sense for them to still be kicking around the farm. The only realistic explanation for the daughter's commitment at that point is that she's suffered some kind of psychological break, which the film unfortunately leaves untouched. Or, if we're willing to go unrealistic/metaphorical, her choice to stay is expressive of children's harmful devotion to their parents, or something like that.
I also agree that by the time the guy sees his mother floating outside, leaving should present itself as a serious option. The daughter seeing her father in the shower is a bit more ambiguous for me because I can believe that maybe she thought he'd legitimately gotten out of bed and was walking around. Not necessarily anything supernatural about that--maybe she was hoping it was some sign of recovery.
But overall I agree with you that the resolution is a letdown and by the second half it makes little sense for them to still be kicking around the farm. The only realistic explanation for the daughter's commitment at that point is that she's suffered some kind of psychological break, which the film unfortunately leaves untouched. Or, if we're willing to go unrealistic/metaphorical, her choice to stay is expressive of children's harmful devotion to their parents, or something like that.
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
Well the shower scene with her father was pretty weird, he wasn't just standing there, his eyes looked demonic and he was shaking his head around which was sped up in post, and I think he was pissing himself.
That's the strange nature of this film right there, even though the second half of the film is frustrating for many reasons, the actions of the children do become more and more plausible. I agree that the daughter's determination to stick around is due to some sort of psychological issue either caused during the first half or caused prior but triggered during the events of the film. When she's asked if she still works at the post office she says no but doesn't elaborate. For all I could tell (and somewhat confirmed when she's on the phone to her brother as he's driving home) she doesn't have much of a life worth returning to (unlike him). So she stays because that's all she has.
In fact, and this is just my personal theory, I think the demon actually wanted her soul not her father's. The possessed nanny could have killed her but simply knocked her out. The mother told them not to come which implies she knew something could have happened to them (like a knowledge that her children were targets). The possessed father appeared to her twice (once in the shower and once on the ceiling while she's in bed). The possessed priest and the possessed granddaughter of the farmhand specifically mock and taunt her without harming her (the priest tries to get the brother to come outside but she stops him, which seemed like an attempt to get her all alone inside the house). Then of course there's the ending which seemed like once he had her trapped alone in the room with her father, he finally appeared directly to her before the screen cuts to black. Just a hunch haha.
I don't dislike the movie though, I thought it was slightly above average. There was some genuinely creepy shit in it.
Einherjar86
Active Member
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
lmfao that's definitely fair. I think I'll eventually rewatch it, might be more enjoyable with more people, and in its defence it has some really great cinematography.
Make sure not to watch The Death of Dick Long between now and a second viewing though, it's distracting knowing that the son played a character in that...
Edit: Remembered something...
Make sure not to watch The Death of Dick Long between now and a second viewing though, it's distracting knowing that the son played a character in that...
Edit: Remembered something...
The wedding dress the daughter finds with her name on it, it's never explained. Perhaps the mother was forced to make it because she was meant to be a demon's bride? Maybe the only reason the father was dying was because the demon needed a reason for the family which had grown distant to come together again, so he could take her? This would also explain why she wakes up one morning covered in lipstick...
It would explain why the mother was seemingly forced to hang herself, so the daughter would take up the role of night nanny for her father.
It would explain why the mother was seemingly forced to hang herself, so the daughter would take up the role of night nanny for her father.
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no country for old wainds
Active Member
- Nov 23, 2002
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good of you to use one of your two posts per year to recommend us such an obscure gem
Einherjar86
Active Member
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
Been watching up a storm lately, some rambly thoughts:
The Hunt (2020) Definitely not subtle satire but I thought it was pretty fun and actually relatively clever with its messaging. I think a lot of people couldn't get beyond the cartoonish caricatures that populate the movie which is a shame because they served a very specific purpose; that in the war between the loudest on both sides of party politics many regular people get caught needlessly in the crossfire. The lead woman was fucking badass too and if nothing else the action was bloody and entertaining. Also bonus points for having liberals and conservatives online whining that the movie was shitting on them, could have been a South Park script tbh. This is the kind of thing I'd throw on with a bunch of people for a laugh.
Sea Fever (2020) Pretty cool little film that plays with classic genre elements like paranoia, isolation, hysteria etc. Some nice visuals and some real cringe-inducing natural horror stuff going on (anybody who has seen this knows what I mean, like how the larvae things hatch). Other than a few episodes of Jessica Jones I haven't seen anything this director has done, and this seems to be her first movie with any visibility, would love to see where she goes next outside of television directing.
His House (2020) Like a fucked up African folk horror acid trip. It's amazing to me that this is a directorial debut, since so much of the thematic and horror genre elements are so well developed. One of the few Netflix originals worth a damn.
The Equalizer 2 (2018) Denzel is the shit, he can do anything. I thought this was an improvement over the first one both in terms of violence/action choreography and the script. Not much to say about this one but this is just one of those comfortable movies for people who like a good action/thriller. Hopefully they do a trilogy.
Fire Will Come (2019) Galician rural slice-of-life drama that doesn't seem to have any overarching point but for some reason these kind of films resonate with me on a level I have trouble explaining. From the start of the movie you get the feeling it will end in some kind of disaster which underscores the mundanity of the meat of the film with an uneasy tension that I liked a lot. The main character's elderly mother was the star of the film for me. <3
Minari (2020) Maybe a bit award-baity but Steven Yeun is just so watchable. Honestly I liked the whole cast and it was a solid film overall but I don't see it blowing any minds nor do I see it appealing to niche-nerds etc. Just a solid family drama. The character arc of the grandmother is incredibly sad though, caught me off guard.
Savage (2020) Bit of an uneven movie for me. Anytime we're dealing with adult Damage I'm 100% engrossed, and child Damage had its moments too, but I thought the teen Damage parts were pretty cringe with some real hamfisted acting etc. Overall I thought it was a solid gang drama with some real grit and a pretty good eye for capturing period aesthetics, but also a bit amateurish in places.
Psycho Goreman (2021) Unashamedly super cheesy and campy with some very nostalgic 80's special effects. The acting almost reaches Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers-tier at times but the brutality and the gags keep it on the rails. Or at least I thought so, this definitely won't be for everybody.
Mystery Road (2013) & Goldstone (2016) I wish I had watched Ivan Sen's Mystery Road and Goldstone films sooner. Fantastic neo-western murder mysteries set in outback communities with a pretty good eye for rural realism. You could even describe them as meat pie noir because they're so well-made and tonally dark. Highly recommended.
Aaron Pedersen is so good in the lead role as a black sheep black fella detective, especially in Goldstone, he's so brooding and grim, he brings to mind the glory days of Clint Eastwood for me. Sad that I'm only just now discovering him as a talent, since it looks like he's been around for awhile and has done a lot of roles in crime shows.
Apparently he has a role in that new meat pie western High Ground which I already wanted to see, now even more so. Oh and yeah, here he is acting alongside one of my all time favourites David Gulpilil (in Goldstone):
The Hunt (2020) Definitely not subtle satire but I thought it was pretty fun and actually relatively clever with its messaging. I think a lot of people couldn't get beyond the cartoonish caricatures that populate the movie which is a shame because they served a very specific purpose; that in the war between the loudest on both sides of party politics many regular people get caught needlessly in the crossfire. The lead woman was fucking badass too and if nothing else the action was bloody and entertaining. Also bonus points for having liberals and conservatives online whining that the movie was shitting on them, could have been a South Park script tbh. This is the kind of thing I'd throw on with a bunch of people for a laugh.
Sea Fever (2020) Pretty cool little film that plays with classic genre elements like paranoia, isolation, hysteria etc. Some nice visuals and some real cringe-inducing natural horror stuff going on (anybody who has seen this knows what I mean, like how the larvae things hatch). Other than a few episodes of Jessica Jones I haven't seen anything this director has done, and this seems to be her first movie with any visibility, would love to see where she goes next outside of television directing.
His House (2020) Like a fucked up African folk horror acid trip. It's amazing to me that this is a directorial debut, since so much of the thematic and horror genre elements are so well developed. One of the few Netflix originals worth a damn.
The Equalizer 2 (2018) Denzel is the shit, he can do anything. I thought this was an improvement over the first one both in terms of violence/action choreography and the script. Not much to say about this one but this is just one of those comfortable movies for people who like a good action/thriller. Hopefully they do a trilogy.
Fire Will Come (2019) Galician rural slice-of-life drama that doesn't seem to have any overarching point but for some reason these kind of films resonate with me on a level I have trouble explaining. From the start of the movie you get the feeling it will end in some kind of disaster which underscores the mundanity of the meat of the film with an uneasy tension that I liked a lot. The main character's elderly mother was the star of the film for me. <3
Minari (2020) Maybe a bit award-baity but Steven Yeun is just so watchable. Honestly I liked the whole cast and it was a solid film overall but I don't see it blowing any minds nor do I see it appealing to niche-nerds etc. Just a solid family drama. The character arc of the grandmother is incredibly sad though, caught me off guard.
Savage (2020) Bit of an uneven movie for me. Anytime we're dealing with adult Damage I'm 100% engrossed, and child Damage had its moments too, but I thought the teen Damage parts were pretty cringe with some real hamfisted acting etc. Overall I thought it was a solid gang drama with some real grit and a pretty good eye for capturing period aesthetics, but also a bit amateurish in places.
Psycho Goreman (2021) Unashamedly super cheesy and campy with some very nostalgic 80's special effects. The acting almost reaches Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers-tier at times but the brutality and the gags keep it on the rails. Or at least I thought so, this definitely won't be for everybody.
Mystery Road (2013) & Goldstone (2016) I wish I had watched Ivan Sen's Mystery Road and Goldstone films sooner. Fantastic neo-western murder mysteries set in outback communities with a pretty good eye for rural realism. You could even describe them as meat pie noir because they're so well-made and tonally dark. Highly recommended.
Aaron Pedersen is so good in the lead role as a black sheep black fella detective, especially in Goldstone, he's so brooding and grim, he brings to mind the glory days of Clint Eastwood for me. Sad that I'm only just now discovering him as a talent, since it looks like he's been around for awhile and has done a lot of roles in crime shows.
Apparently he has a role in that new meat pie western High Ground which I already wanted to see, now even more so. Oh and yeah, here he is acting alongside one of my all time favourites David Gulpilil (in Goldstone):
challenge_everything
Active Member
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
Einherjar86
Active Member
I really liked both of these. The Hunt isn't subtle, as you say; it's both satire and very campy. Really fun movie, and ridiculous all around. Sea Fever was also well done--taut and tense low budget horror. I also have massive thalassophobia, so that enhanced the film's effect.
Very excited to see this, glad to hear it was solid.
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
Krow
Garbage Connoisseur
CiG
Harbinger of Metal
Not quite sure what that means but it has nothing to do with drugs, just a lot of hallucinatory shit going on.
rms
Active Member
Watched Judas and the Black Messiah. Think that's a real tough film to make, I'm curious as to how much had to get cut out in order to keep it a nice runtime for the fresh director. But good movie overall.
Think the audience didn't get the weight that Hampton was only 21, O'neal really making a monumentally bad decision that apparently didn't get his attention until the documentary mentioned at the end.
Think the Hoover caricature will give shock to many but would be surprised at what the truth is. But man, could make 4-5 movies out of those storylines and he just made one two hour film.
Think the audience didn't get the weight that Hampton was only 21, O'neal really making a monumentally bad decision that apparently didn't get his attention until the documentary mentioned at the end.
Think the Hoover caricature will give shock to many but would be surprised at what the truth is. But man, could make 4-5 movies out of those storylines and he just made one two hour film.
