On any given day if I were asked to list my top ten movies of all time you might find some irregularities, one day I might include something I neglected in a previous list and vice versa. In the case of John Carpenter's Sci-fi Horror classic The Thing (1982) I'm fairly confident it would stand up to the inconsistencies of my list making abilities. The opening scene described by Carpenter as "Apocalyptic" in a DVD commentary is a lesson in tonal architecture and wizardry. Through a blanket of seemingly infinite snow and Ice we are witness to bizarre yet mesmerising chase involving an Alaskan Malamute and a Norwegian Helicopter, gun shots and explosions sporadically filing the sonic voids, it is eerie stuff.
The Thing's central theme is paranoia driven by the decaying predicament of our would be victims and heroes, who are a collection of US scientists stationed on an Antarctic base as they come to terms with a series of mysterious events, coupled with the impending doom of a conflict with a shape-shifting malevolent alien being, accelerated by the desolate nature of their surroundings.
One of the more ingenuous aspects of the film is the creative brilliance of Make-up and effects guru Rob Bottin who went on to be hot property following his work here moving on to the likes of RoboCop (1987) and Seven (1995). Bottin’s deranged depictions of death and mutation still hold their own against today’s CGI.
Kurt Russell's plays both hero and anti-hero in his role as R.J. "Mac" MacReady in arguably the best ever performance of his career, as he leads an all male supporting cast notably Wilford Brimley who plays spooked Doctor Blair and Keith David who reprises Mac's rival Alpha-male Childs.
Years after release and despite limited commercial success perhaps The Things most impressive feat is its legacy, seen as a hauntingly premonitory like warning of the AIDS epidemic that would sweep the world a couple of years later. The Things influence through an assembly of iconic scenes and set pieces would go on to influence a generation of films and film makers such as Alien 3 (1992), Species (1995), The Faculty (1998). Whilst being among others one of Quinten Tarantino's big influences using the all male cast ethos closely in his signature work Reservoir Dogs (1992).
9/10
2. Some Think New
Paranormal Activity 2 (2010)
There is a pretty standard set up for Paranormal Activity 2, family moves into house – house may or may not be haunted – paranoid ethic nanny believes in demons – house appears to have been burgled and so on. These are among the circumstances that directly and indirectly lead family figurehead Dan to invest in some home security cameras in an effort to get to the bottom of what is going on.
Naturally this allows the audience to participate in a voyeuristic viewing experience for much of the film. The rest of the story is told through the families persistent use of a hand held video camera particularly more intimate family and personal moments in a lost/found footage type plot structure. The cast is largely un-credited, assumedly to provide more credence to the notion of real life authenticity. In the main they don’t do too bad a job of playing the modern day family Dad Dan is the breadwinner, mom Kristi is the attentive mother and step mom to Martine, we also have as previously mentioned an “is she crazy is she not” Nanny , Baby boy Hunter and family Dog Abby.
The action relies on drawn out video sequences to build the suspense for the impending horror, which usually comes in the shape of jumpy scares out of moments of intense silence that are effective in delivering some frights and thrills. There are however some badly misjudged segments of the film which may amuse rather than terrify as intended.
In closing this is a film for casual horror fans and or lovers of shaky camera work paired heavy breathing and footsteps which likely drew people to the predecessor and other films of similar look or feel. Not for everyone but decent none the less.
7/10
3. Some Think Foreign
Let The Right One In (2008)
Like it or not the rise and modernisation of the vampire genre through a recent glut of literature, prime time TV series and feature length cinematic conversions of both, have seen a somewhat de-mystification and counter demonisation of the Vampire. The likes of the Twilight Saga for example opting to focus more on moody teen angst rather than traditional horror concepts and ideologies.
Let the Right One In offers a darkly insightful representation of Vampirism tinged with pre adolescent confusion and fascination. The Story is quintessentially a tale of friendship between a bullied schoolboy Oskar who suffers for the pain of his innocence, and a genderless Vampire child Eli suffering an inner void prompted by a distinct lacking of innocence. By searching within each other both characters are able to emancipate feelings and emotions trapped within the confines of their own lives which despite appearing to being of similar age are deeply contrasting.
The story itself is a unique ensemble of thematic diversities taking on murder, revenge, subversion whilst countering with childhood innocence, loyalty and redemption. In directing the film Tomas Alfredson is masterful in his choice of low angled camera shots which helps create the child like perspective of our protagonists, yet also managing to hold genuine horror elements through shadowy lighting, jumpy suspense and clever use of symbolism.
The film is Swedish and subtitles but that should not deter anyone from seeing a fantastic piece of romance, horror and mystery. The story is easy to follow and the dialogue at no point pontificates or over indulges allowing the narrative to unfold naturally. Well worth the effort.
9/10
4. Some Think Due
Released: 5 November 2010
Let Me In (2010)
Those who aren't tolerant to subtitles maybe interested in the American re-make of Let The Right One In (2008). Taking on the task is Cloverfield (2007) director Matt Reeves with Chloe Moretz from Kick-Ass (2010) and Kodi Smit-McPhee from last years The Road (2009). Despite the release date you can catch special Halloween previews this weekend.
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