Word of Mouth Scale

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The Snowtown Murders

Based on true events, 16 year-old Jamie falls in with his mother’s new boyfriend and his crowd of self-appointed neighborhood watchmen, a relationship that leads to a spree of torture and murder.

Yet another based-on-a-true-story horror flick. Hard to believe, but the actual events are even more horrific* than this movie reveals. What the movie reveals is graphic enough – and difficult to watch.

The movie is slow, especially compared to the standard American thriller. The pace dulls the sense of growing menace a bit, but the cast does a fair job keeping us on edge.

Particularly good is Daniel Henshall as John Bunting. We meet him as an amiable suitor to young Jamie’s mother, and he seems a welcome, stable addition to the family. Bunting presents as a caring protector, though we see his darkness simmering just below the surface. His emerging psychopathy is chillingly portrayed by this talented actor.

If this were a work of fiction, I would have criticized it for having a “lazy script”, merely throwing in bits of blood & gore to shock the audience. Knowing the true story, however, I find I am grateful for the director’s restraint in merely showing bits of blood & gore to convey what was much, much greater horror.

This is not an enjoyable film. It is not one I would ever watch again. From a critical standpoint, however, it was well done and accomplished what a movie should – it told the story. It also left me especially disturbed in the knowledge that Bunting was able to infect those around him with his evil; ultimately 6 people were directly involved in the murders and many more knew but didn’t report them. One violent psychopath is scary, a pack of them is terrifying. Whether they were charmed by him into participation, or intimidated into it, I don’t know – either way, my skin will be crawling at the thought for a long time.

In my circle, this isn’t the type of story that is well received, so only 2 on the scale. You can see by the Rotten Tomatoes numbers below how well reviewed it was by critics & audience alike.

* The documentary on YouTube was made prior to the release of many sealed documents. Therefore, it is possible some info made it into the movie that was not referenced in the documentary.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 86%; Audience 70%

Machine Gun Preacher (2011)

Posted on October 4, 2012 by Vox AZ

Machine Gun Preacher

Sam Childers is a former drug-dealing biker tough guy who found God and became a crusader for hundreds of Sudanese children who’ve been forced to become soldiers.

Another movie “based on true events”; this is a more vivid, higher budget “Kony 2012” The final product is sub-par, but still conveys what is a gruesome, horrifying situation in Sudan.

The main failing is that the film tries to tell us too much of the tale. The narratives get a bit disjointed as we follow Childers’ come to Jesus, crisis of faith, family tension, business success, business failings, friendships gained, friendships lost, battles fought, children saved, ups & downs… An inability to focus the story, rather than sending us in several directions, dampens the ability to fully invest in any part of it.

I understand (and appreciate) that it was important to reveal our hero’s flaws, but he comes across as simplistic. As does much in the movie.

It’s actiony. It’s tragic. It’s well cast. It just didn’t quite succeed. Some will enjoy it, but not many in my circle.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 29%; Audience 64%

Brake (2012)

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Vox AZ

Brake

A Secret Service Agent is held captive in the trunk of a car and endures mental and physical torture as terrorists attempt to extract information for their plot against the President of the United States.

It is never a good sign when you are pretty sure you have the ending figured out in the first three minutes. Even worse when you are hoping you are wrong because the ending you’ve pictured would just be a bit too lame. Unfortunately, we had it figured out – and we weren’t wrong.

That’s not to say the movie is a bust; the acting works well enough (though Dorff seems an odd casting choice), the pace is fast enough (though the countdown timers are an unused distraction), the final twist will give you a small bit of satisfaction (though…predictable).

Rated “R” for mental torture, violent themes, and a great deal of profanity. This movie will have a limited appeal, and even less limited appeal in my circle, so only 2 on the Word of Mouth scale.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 46%, Audience 48%

Memory Fails

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Vox AZ

I have neglected this blog for quite a while. In the interim, when I would see a movie and think to review it, I would create a draft post here with just the title, or perhaps the title and a quick rating, intending to come back and flesh it out.

Now that I have the time and focus to write a bit more I started going through those old drafts – and I realize I have forgotten most of the detail about 80% of them.

Worse, I have forgotten every detail of at least 20% :-/

Guess I’ll blame it on getting older…

The Women (1939)

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Vox AZ

The Women

“Oh, l’amour, l’amour, how it can let you down. Hmm. How it can pick you up again.”

“You’re passing up a swell chance, honey. Where I spit no grass grows ever.”

“No, dear, a man has only one escape from his old self – to see a different self in the mirror of some woman’s eyes.”

“The first man who can explain how he can be in love with his wife – and another woman – is gonna win that prize they’re always giving out in Sweden.”

One of the earliest examples I remember of the full range of female archetypes was this great film with an all-star, all-female cast. It intrigued me to see something so bold as an entire movie without any men, though the influence of husbands, lovers and others is certainly felt.

Among the women we meet are:

Sweet, happily wedded Mary Haines (Norma Shearer)
Conniving man-eater Crystal Allen (Joan Crawford)
Catty scandalmonger Sylvia Fowler (Rosalind Russell)
Hopeless romantic, unlucky in love Countess De Lave (Mary Boland)
Middle-class housewife and mother Edith Potter (Phyllis Povah)
Wealthy in her own right, naive Peggy Day (Joan Fontaine)
and more – in all, there are 130 speaking roles all filled by women

Though slightly melodramatic (weren’t they all back then?) a witty script and snappy dialogue survive well the test of time. The ending of this movie had me believing in love and cheering for the power of real girlfriends, especially when you really need them.

Loses a star because it probably wouldn’t appeal to the men in my circle – and it will be a bit too melodramatic for some of the girls 😉

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 90%; Audience 89%

Remakes:
Another favorite I will review on it’s own, The Opposite Sex. An adaptation that not only becomes a musical – but includes men in the cast.

An updated remake, The Women (2008) – with a horrific cast and general lack of cattiness. Why bother? Haven’t seen this one, doubt I will. UPDATE: Saw it, hated it

Redemption: For Robbing the Dead (2011)

Posted on September 23, 2012 by Vox AZ

Redemption: For Robbing the Dead

Another small, independent movie D found. So small, in fact, that Rotten Tomatoes has no reviews as of this writing. There is little information about the movie online, but according to the blurb on the movie’s official site, it is based on actual events. It also was filmed in the actual locations, including Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake.

For Robbing the Dead is a story of compassion. It follows the story of Henry Heath, a law officer in 1862 Salt Lake City. Heath finds himself responsible for the well-being of a prisoner whom he despises – an impoverished French immigrant named Jean Baptiste who is convicted of robbing the graves of the recently deceased. Baptiste is exiled to Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake. With no one willing to look after this man, Henry Heath becomes Baptiste’s sole defense against the hostile isolation of Antelope Island and the contempt of an entire community.

Margot Kidder is a surprise here, as the condemned man’s slightly ‘tetched’ wife. Barry Corbin is a good choice for the wizened Judge and mentor to the lawman who catches – and cares for – “the ghoul Jean Baptiste”. The stars, John Freeman as Heath and David Stevens as Baptiste, are convincing in their pain and dysfunction.

It took me a while to decide whether I liked this movie or not (I did), and so I am not sure how much of a recommendation to give it. There are some unpleasant bits, but only so much as is necessary to convey the story. The subject matter itself is tough, we are talking about grave robbing & frontier justice, after all. However, the bigger story is about Grace and sometimes finding it in the most unlikely places. For that reason, I think I will recommend it to most in my circle – because this film is odd enough, and small enough, and quirky enough that I think they will all find something positive in it.

It isn’t a great movie, but I am giving it four stars.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics N/A; Audience 60%

Bernie (2011)

Posted on September 22, 2012 by Vox AZ

Bernie

Jack Black plays Bernie Tiede, well-loved assistant funeral director in a small Texas town. Shirley MacLaine plays Marjorie Nugent, wealthy, cranky, unpopular widow. The way their paths cross is the meat of Bernie, a dark comedy based on a true story. The movie seems far-fetched, but, according to Marjorie’s nephew, the outlandish details were “ripped from the headlines“.

There are little things in “Bernie” that aren’t exactly true, bits of dialogue, a changed name here and there. But the big things, the weirdest things, the things you’d assume would have to be made up, happened exactly as the movie says they did.

Black gives one of his best performances to date, showing us the melancholy and heart in a man somehow driven to murder. MacLaine is an ideal choice as the cranky, crazy old codger fated to be folded into a freezer. The one weak link in casting is Matthew McConaughey playing a Texas lawyer (shocker, McConaughey cast as a lawyer!) set with the unpopular task of prosecuting the town’s favorite resident.

Interspersed throughout the movie, we get bits of local residents (some of them actual residents who knew the real Tiede & Nugent) talking about the couple and the case. It’s a device that can be cheesy if poorly executed, but it works quite well here.

Despite the subject matter, this movie will appeal to just about everyone in my circle. Even those who you wouldn’t expect to get a chuckle from a murder.

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 92%; Audience 76%