Rare TV Flix: Island of the Dead

A recent addition proved to be good (fodder for a Review).  The Movie itself...kind of sucks.  This will be a short one, huh?  Nah.  Today's Film is Island of the Dead, a TV Movie from the year 2000.  In my experience, Films with 'of the Dead' in the Title that are not by Romero tend to suck.  Of course, Romero's own have been...off-and-on themselves.  In this Film, a group of people go to a place called Hart Island off the coast of New York.  The place is full of unmarked graves, which a bad man wants to put buildings on top of.  Before we can get another Poltergeist out of this (too late!), some weird shit goes down.  I won't SPOIL it just yet.  Just know that this is a pretty obscure Film with one Star on the rise at the time (Talisa Soto), one Veteran Star on the decline (Malcolm McDowell) and one who has no reason to be here (Mos Def).  Want to know more about this yet?  I sure hope so...

A woman is looking into the history of the unmarked graves left on Hart Island since the Civil War.

This guy wants to build property on the place, since the land is cheap.

These dudes are stuck delivering the bodies and burying them as payment for their petty crimes.

This barely-90-minute Film pads its Runtime with lots of walking...and bickering...and talking.

About an hour in, we finally get some action.  What is this Film building up to?

Flies.  Evil, angry Flies.

I'll give you a moment to stop laughing and continue.

When they attack you, you get all made up.  It...is the most interesting thing here.  Aw.

You want to know what the least interesting thing is?  Shooting shots of Flies at night.  Ugh.

When all is said and done, Soto goes back unharmed and...the movie ends.  Alright then.

So yeah, kind of...not good.  Okay- kind of shit.  Don't get me wrong- there was certainly promise.  The real Story about Hart Island is certainly a good set-up for Horror.  There really are lots and lots of unclaimed bodies there.  So, of course, with that real set-up, we get...killer flies.  Yes, there is more to it than that.  No, that doesn't make killer flies look less silly.  Deep down, I do love Malcolm McDowell too.  He's great.  He just picks so much shit to be in.  In a perfect world, he gets good work and...you know, does it.  As it is, the best thing quality-wise I've seen him in is those Commercials with James Earl Jones.  Remember those?  You certainly don't remember this one.  Give me a few days and I won't either.  I feel like I shouldn't forget it...but I'm totally going to.  Speaking of things to never forget...

Next up, I tackle some recent crap from WWE Films.  Given how the first Film had promise (and nothing more), how will this one go?  Stay tuned...

Poor Bastards of Cinema: Alien Outlaw (Part 1)

Given the Film's penchant for killing random people, I can keep this up for awhile!

In Alien Outlaw, we meet a cute young thing in pink.  She's working at this Farm for the Summer.

These two rednecks show up and hit on her.  How can you turn down a guy with a pole?

Well, she does.  The Film kind of jokingly-implies that something dirty would happen to her if she did go with them.  Comedy?

She stays behind as everyone leaves, including the Farmer (to be inside).  Back to work!

...or rather instantly attacked (and killed) by one of the Aliens!

It actually happens so suddenly that you'd think that the guys would see it in their Rear View as they drive away!  They don't, of course.

This poor girl does nothing, except for possibly avoiding date rape.  That means that she must die!

What's the lesson?  Doing your job is more dangerous than ditching it?  Look around for Aliens that you should be able to see coming at you from across an open field?

Just in case- do both.  That or avoid North Carolina's random Alien Outlaws.

Twin Piqued: Pilot

It is Saturday, so it is time for us to take another trip to...

That's right- I'm starting something brand new for the Saturday Series.  So I guess it is our first trip.

In the Pilot, a small Town is rocked by the death of a young girl...and what follows.

*****

This is Laura Palmer.  She was a popular High School Girl who everyone knew and loved.  Now she is dead.

After the body is found, it is time to call...Harry S. Truman.

I should mention that the Sheriff is named Harry S. Truman, because...David Lynch.

As you can see, the Mother takes the news well.

After awhile, another missing girl shows up wandering near dead down some train tracks.  Since she crossed a State Line, the FBI is called in.

This leads to...the first of, I'm guessing, 1,000 scenes of Kyle McLachlan and his Tape Recorder.

There is way too much to cover here in depth, since the Pilot is twice as long as every other Episode.  Here's a brief Summary for you...

- Laura has many secrets, including $10,000 in a Safe Deposit Box.
- The Town is full of shady Characters who must be up to something.
- Several of her Classmates have secrets.
- There is a tape showing her connection to another male Student not her boyfriend.
- In the middle of all this, a deer head apparently falls on a table.

Since I'm not going too in-depth this time, I can give you a good example of why the Show is worth revisiting.  Look at how much better the Show looks now compared to early Video releases.

 This is an odd one.  I should note that this is one of my few experiences with any of David Lynch's stuff.  I saw Dune, but I also know how cut up and redone that was.  In the End, who's to say how much of that was even his anymore?  So, like most Americans, my first exposure to true, unfiltered Lynch is Twin Peaks.  I won't lie- I was not disappointed.  The thing is weird as hell, but it does have great Music, really good Acting, lovely visuals (Now in HD) and a genuinely-interesting mystery.  For the record, I DON'T know who killed Laura Palmer and would like to find out when the Show lets me.  I also know that there is alot more to the Story, which I also don't know in any great detail.  I could have read SPOILERS over the last twenty-odd years, but I haven't.  Don't ruin this for me, please.  After watching the Pilot, I definitely want to keep going and am curious to see how this plays out.  In the meantime, let's all enjoy how the Pilot was marketed on Videotape (as a Movie) in Japan...

Next week, the mystery deepens.  Who is innocent, who is guilty and who is just nuts?  See you then.

Awesome Cover Art: The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976)

While I haven't seen the Original yet, I can't deny its Cult Appeal.

Does it have anything to do with neat Posters like this one?

That certainly helps.

To be fair, this image is a bit of a transposition.  You have the masked Zodiac Killer (a recent event) combined with the Zodiac Killer attacking people in parked Cars.  There's also a little Son of Sam in there too, I think.

Regardless, it does set a good mood for the Film.  It is ominous.  It is bleak.  It appears to match the Time Period.

All in all, a solid Poster.  Nothing against the more iconic Poster, but I'd like to see this one more often!

New Flix: The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014)

The man that dreaded trying to explain all of this.  Today's Film is The Town That Dreaded Sundown, a Film that sounds like a Remake (of a Film by the same name), but is actually a Sequel.  Of course, it can't be that simple.  Yes, for the sake of argument, I am pretending that that last sentence made sense.  I will do my best to explain this in a way that makes the most sense.  So the 1976 Film is based on a series of real events in Texarkansas.  This Movie is based on the idea that the real events had a follow-up after the Film was released.  Yes, this is a Sequel to a Movie in which the Movie it is a Sequel to was just a movie...but also real.  Your brain hurt yet?  Let's compound things then, shall we?  The Movie was Shot in May 2013, but didn't come out until September of 2014, which makes one bit of Casting feel weird.  So what is the actual Plot?  Well, a masked killer called The Phantom terrorized a small town in Texarkansas (the area where Texas and Arkansas share a border) in 1946.  Years and years later, he's back and the place is freaking the hell out!  Is it good or bad?  While you ponder that thought, do know that this is the first Film by Orion Pictures in 15 years!  On that bombshell, let's begin...

The masked man known as The Phantom- Billy Zane?- is back in Texarkansas after years.  Why?

It all has to do with...the Film that this is a Sequel to.  Why make a Film if you can't confusingly-shove a Meta Plot into it?

Isn't it also worth asking why a Film about a real life unsolved murder in Town would be shown annually?  Do they show The Zodiac Killer every year in San Francisco?

In Slasher-Film Tradition, we have one lady being targeted by the Killer to 'make people remember.'

What does he want people to remember?  The movie?  The original killings?  The Alamo?

Let's just hope that the Law- including Gary Cole and Anthony Andersen- can solve the case!

As the killings continue, our poor Final Girl continues to be confounded...but keeps investigating.

In some random fan service, we get to see The Phantom kill a guy with a Trombone.  In that case, I have two key suspects!

It is worth noting that because the Film was shot in May of 2013, it features Ed Lauter, who sadly passed away in October of 2013.  Yes, I did pick the most awkward shot of him possible too.

I won't SPOIL who the killer or his/her motives.  I will just leave you with this creepy guy saying 'Hello.'  The End.

It is pretty good.  Do bear in mind that I have NOT seen the Original Film.  I'm sure that I will.  So just know that I'm going to judge this purely as the Movie it actually is.  Unfortunately, the framing is a bit convoluted.  Why not just make a Sequel?  Why pick the most confusing way to do things?  On the plus side, it is not a PREQUEL titled like a Remake (Cough*TheThing*Cough).  Why is it titled like a Remake?  Is it because the Title is arguably the most famous part of the original Film?  I mean, I only know it for that and its possibly-ripped-off Cover.  That said, the Film does play with some conventions/conceits in regards to that Film.  I won't say that the Film lacks style.  While I'm not into much of what he does, Ryan Murphy did Produce an interesting Film.  The whole thing has a sunbaked look- although I don't know how much of that is Color Correction and how much is real.  One silly bit is how they seem to be obsessed with clarifying which side of the Texarkansas border the Scene takes place on.  Would a Scene be ruined if I didn't know that it was in Texas, as opposed to Arkansas?  I don't think so!  Aside from silly stuff, this one is nice and atmospheric.  It still isn't anything amazing and its Meta Plot muddles the ending explanation a bit.  That said, you get to see a ton of random SWAG from the Original Film- including the German Poster.  Just for you, Maynard.

Next up, a mystery Film courtesy of a Thrift Store.  It is obscure and features Malcolm McDowell- should I be worried?  Stay tuned...

'80s Riffed Trash: Alien Outlaw

A Film only worth tackling with some help.  Thankfully, I did this in the right order.  On Rifftrax, they released this as a VOD and it looked funny.  It was.  The Movie sucks, but they made it hilarious to watch.  The former is important because, you know what, I might as well finish off the Directing Career of Phil Smoot now.  So what is Alien Outlaw?  As you probably guessed, the Plot involves an Alien.  Right off the bat, we have issues.  First- there are three Aliens here.  Is only one of them an Outlaw?  Are they from a place called Outlaw?  Are they just a band called Outlaw that happens to be Aliens?  Second- how do we know that they are Outlaws?  This Film has them running around and killing people, but how do I know that other Aliens consider killing us to be bad?  We could just be like those Goldfish you scoop out at a State Fair as far as they are concerned.  Am I overthinking this or did Phil Smoot- who is also the Writer and a Producer- underthink it?  Dunno.  The Film is notable for featuring Lash LeRoux, who was also in Smoot's other Film- The Dark Power.  It also features two of his barely-there buddies in pointless Cameos.  It is also the first AND LAST role of Kari Anderson, who plays the alleged Lead here.  I say 'alleged' since the Film has too many Characters and was Edited by someone with selective ADHD.  It jumps from Scene to Scene all the time, but sometimes lingers WAY too long in them.  How bad is this one?  Well, I watched Smoot's other Film about five years ago and only saw his 2nd through Rifftrax, so you decide.  To find out for yourself, read on...

An alien ship shows up in...North Carolina, but crashes (off-camera).  You get this effect twice, so enjoy it.

This is Jesse Jamison.  She runs an Old West-style Shooting Show...in 1985.  Was that a thing?

The Film's Cast is chock full of Rednecks.  There's not anything inherently wrong with that, but...this is so absurd that I'm not sure if it is supposed to be Parody or not.  I mean...

So anyhow, these are what the Aliens look like.  For the record, this did come out before Predator.  For the record, Alien Humanoids running around was also not invented by Predator, so...you know.

You want something scary?  How about this Scene with Lash in his boxer shorts?!?

Or this amazingly-unfunny fat guy covered in yarn, pots and pans?  Real scary.

The Climax involves Jesse chasing the 3 Aliens through the woods on both horseback and on-foot.  As for Lash, he does nothing of use.  He just keeps reminding her of how many bullets she has left and telling her to aim carefully.

Seriously- he doesn't use a Whip once here!

The Aliens one weakness- their 'Shoot Me Here' Backpacks that explode.  Holy, Legend of Zelda!

The finale is especially goofy as it involves Lash and Jesse constantly-reminding us of how many bullets are left, Lash's useless motivational speeches and Jesse only winning by luck (and faulty science).  The End.

What a ridiculous mess.  The Film tries to be a Comedy.  The Film tries to be Science-Fiction.  The Film tries to be a realistic Action Film.  It pretty much fails at all of them.  It isn't really funny (without Rifftrax).  It is barely Sci-Fi, as we never see the Aliens with advanced weapons or really see the ship well.  As far being realistic, they do track things like bullet count and show reloading.  That doesn't make it really interesting.  It isn't better or worse because of this.  It would be a bad, poorly-shot Scene regardless of if they fired 5 shots or 5,000.  Here's the big question: who is this for?  Is it for Sci-Fi Fans who also love Hee-Haw?  Is it for Dukes of Hazard fans that also love Aliens?  Is it for Gunsmoke fans that also love Hee-Haw AND Aliens?  I honestly couldn't tell you.  I can tell you again that if this sounds ridiculous, Rifftrax is the way to go (as with Dark Power).  Oh and don't feel bad for the Film's 'Star.'  According to IMDB, she works as a Make-Up Artist/Assistant on a range of Films/TV like The Flash, Rapture-palooza and True Justice.  I'll leave you with a spot from the new Rifftrax Intro.  Fun Game- try to guess as many of the people as you can...

Next up, I tackle the long-delayed follow-up to a 70s Cult Classic.  Will the Meta Plot help or hurt this one?  Stay tuned...

Animondo: Dusk Maiden of Amnesia

Welcome back to Animondo, your inconsistently-scheduled look at whatever anime I happen to feel like talking about. Today, we're having a look at Dusk Maiden of Amnesia.

Dusk Maiden of Amnesia is the story of Teiichi, a young high school student, and his friend Yuko, who has a severe case of amnesia combined with an extremely severe case of being dead. It's a combination of school comedy, teen romance, psychological conflict, supernatural horror/suspense, and supernatural mystery. Quite a mix of themes!

Here's the setup. Teiichi, wandering through an older, unused section of his school, happens to encounter Yuko, an enigmatic and eccentric girl, who claims she is, in fact, a ghost--specifically, the ghost mentioned in just about every ghost story the school has. Teiichi has his doubts at first, but those are all banished when he accidentally happens upon Yuko's body in a hidden chamber, near a strange altar.

Yuko, it turns out, was somehow killed years ago on the school grounds, and has wandered the halls ever since. Few people can actually see her, and her mysterious death has led to her being the central character of various ghost stories at school. She doesn't remember how she died...so Teiichi makes it his mission to find out the truth behind her death, and the two strike up a friendship in the meantime. Yuko also ropes Teiichi into creating a supernatural investigation club, which they use to gain information about the school's ghost stories in the thought that some of them might contain hints to the truth.

That, and Yuko just wants to have some fun.

A couple other characters join along the way--Kirie, a girl who doubts Yuko's intentions and believes she may be the evil ghost she's rumored to be, and Momoe, a girl Yuko and Teiichi save early on (from something that's admittedly totally Yuko's fault) and who believes strongly in the supernatural (but is the only member of the club who can't see Yuko).

All in all...Dusk Maiden of Amnesia is terrific. I know the above sounds fairly standard, but it's a wonderful setup for some great character interactions. The main characters are quite strong, with interesting personalities, and give us some excellent underlying themes of faith, doubt, and the power of belief in both positive and negative lights. The interplay between Yuko, Teiichi, and Kirie is particularly strong, with Teiichi and Kirie trying to change each other's views of Yuko--views that are both supported by different pieces of evidence in the show.

This is one of the central themes of the show, and it's very strong. Yuko is an extremely questionable character as the show goes on, and it's very uncertain whether she is the innocent ghost just looking for a friend Teiichi believes she is, or the vengeful spirit Kirie thinks she is. Initially she seems fine...then, in Kirie's first appearance, there seems reason to doubt. That's pushed back, even somewhat from Kirie...but then, doubts creep in again. This pattern keeps itself up throughout the series, with doubts growing stronger and stronger, but never without at least a sense of hope. It makes the viewer uncertain just whether Yuko can be trusted or not, and that definitely helps keep one wanting to find out what happens next. The fact that Teiichi and Kirie both alternatingly make inroads on convincing each other definitely helps a lot, too--this isn't an unchanging situation. Some episodes, Teiichi will really start to wonder about Yuko, and others Kirie will really feel like she's just be heaping blame on an innocent.

It ties in wonderfully with the series' reveals about what's going on, too, but I won't spoil that.

The other theme of the show, of course, is the ghost stories that the club investigates. Again, I won't spoil most of what goes on here, but I adore the overall concept that is used for these parts of the plot. The show strongly explores the power of imagination and belief--the idea that one can get so overwhelmed by a story, the right atmosphere, and the like that the story becomes real. Students in the school believe so strongly in the stories at some points in the series that they are actually in danger, so it's up to Teiichi and the gang to save them...which they do, wonderfully, by going along with the ghost stories and using some trickery to bring them to happy endings--for instance, by having Yuko play the evil ghost of the story and Teiichi "banish" her with charms or other supernatural paraphernalia. I love the idea: they don't get rid of the ghost stories by disproving them--they just bring them to an ending where no one gets hurt. That way, even if people believe them, there's no problem.

It's a great, great concept that gets at the power of the mind and how it can make us think things that could hurt us, but can pull us back out of the same harm it might inflict. It leads to some very funny moments in the series, but also to some excellently dramatic ones--especially for some stories that aren't so easily resolved. And, it nicely reinforces the idea that Yuko really is tied to every one of these stories--which further emphasizes the theme of questioning just what she is. After all...she's really good at playing an evil ghost for their tricks.

I won't discuss the later stages of the series much, other than to say that there are some terrific developments that involve a lot of interesting interpretations of psychological effects of trauma. I'm not sure if it's all truly good psychology, but it makes for a neat story and some creative character developments. There ends up being a ton of tension between the club members as the series goes on, and the series' tone starts to darken significantly--though not to the extent of, say, Another. Still, this definitely shares that show's theme of doubting friends as it draws to its conclusion.

Stylistically, the show is quite strong as well. I generally like anime art styles, but I can't let this review go by without singling out this one especially for its use of color. It is absolutely amazing. Dusk Maiden of Amnesia makes some of the strongest use of color to set mood and evoke the difference between the normal and the supernatural that I have ever seen. It's the whole use of the color red thing from The Sixth Sense on steroids. The show uses entirely different palettes depending on the scene, with really vibrant and eerie hues being used when the supernatural begins to make itself known, and makes great use of sharp colors and distorted art when things become particularly suspenseful. It also has some excellent use of quirky little style touches like quick cutaways, odd viewing angles, extreme closeups, and some fun little bits that show drawings in a style much closer to Japanese woodblock art. Most of all, though, I love the skies in this show. They're wonderful, beautiful, multicolored fantasies that look like the best sunsets you've ever seen. The general art style is very strong...but the skies are just striking.

There are a couple points here and there where stylistic touches don't work as well, such as one late-show point where for inexplicable reasons Teiichi is drawn as a chibi or younger child while seeing some pretty critical story elements and it kind of makes for an odd mix that could cheapen the associated scenes...but overall, it really works.

Unfortunately, there is one elephant in the room I have to discuss as well...fan service. I know...it's part of anime, and it shouldn't be. It's sexist, demeaning, and part of far too many shows. And...it is unfortunately quite noticeable in Dusk Maiden of Amnesia. Yuko is very much treated as a sex object at times on the show, with some of the other female characters getting that treatment at least occasionally. It kind of fits in with the show's plot--there are reasons that Yuko is, shall we say, less than shy...but it still doesn't need to be near as big a part of things as it is. It is part of things to an extent that it's embarrassing to watch sometimes. I want to be clear that this isn't a show with a sex-crazed plot or anything like that...it just really concentrates far too much on basically putting a giant sign over Yuko's head with flashing lights and sirens highlighting the fact that she is, in fact, female and attractive. This has a plot that my mom would love, actually--she likes supernatural mysteries and psychological stories--but there's no way in heck I would watch it with her. It feels wrong.

Does it ruin the show? That's really for you to decide. I was still able to watch it and like it, but it definitely hurt the show for me. I would like it much better if that was drastically toned down, and it makes it much harder to recommend to people...which, considering how much I want to shout my love for this show from the rooftops, is kind of a big deal.

Overall, though...that caveat aside, Dusk Maiden of Amnesia is one of the strongest anime I've watched. It has just the right balance of humor, suspense, and drama, and combines that with some great plot concepts to make a very fun viewing experience--an experience that is heightened by the sheer wonder evoked by the colors and art styles in much of the show. If you're at all interested in ghost stories and mysteries, I have to recommend this one. And if not...seriously, at least look up some of the pics to see those skies.

Dubbed or Subbed? This is another one where it's kind of up to you. I liked both, though I think I kind of prefer the subtitled version on this one. The Japanese performance is just a touch stronger to me, but...not in any way I can put my finger on directly. It may just be that the foreign language enhanced the unfamiliar feel of the supernatural scenes, I guess. Either way, neither version has any major flaws.

One note: For some reason, the first episode of the series, titled "Ghost Maiden," is a kind of in-media-res story where the supernatural club has already been established, and basically shows the same half-episode twice, once with Yuko invisible and the other time showing her. It's...a little cute, but kind of tedious. And it doesn't really reveal anything essential. I recommend skipping it and starting with episode 2, "Maiden of a Chance Meeting." You can always go back and watch it later.