Roman Polanski's horror classic is literally pregnant with paranoia. Mia Farrow gets an iconic cropped 'do, John Cassavetes broods
Halfway through Polanski's classic psycho-horror, Rosemary (Farrow) decides to chop off her bob. Not since Delilah took to Samson's barnet has a haircut signalled such a decline.
It's at that moment that Rosemary's slump into madness begins. She's pregnant, she's in love with husband Cassavetes, and living in a beautiful new apartment. But a burning pain in her womb tells her something's not right. Why are her elderly neighbours so concerned? Why has hubby's career suddenly blossomed? Surely her memory of being raped by Satan was just a dream?
Ira Levin's story erodes Rosemary's sanity drip by drip. A pierced ear, a foul smelling charm, a chocolate mousse with a chalky flavour, these are the unlikely fertilisers of her paranoia. In Polanski's hands their significance remains chillingly ambiguous as he explores the natural alienation of pregnancy. Truly terrifying.
The opening five minutes of the film are a marvel. Almost completely devoid of dialogue the scenes portray visually more story than most modern thrillers can fit into two hours. This is about the best book-to-film conversion I've ever seen. The cuts, where they are made, are logical and some locations are combined. From Forsyth's first, and probably best book (written in less than 5 weeks) this film contains nothing that does not drive the story forward. The character of the Jackal is brilliantly finely drawn. He doesn't contain any of the cliches that you would expect to see in a film written in the last twenty years (he doesn't display mental instability, or have flashbacks to some event in his past). He never tries to justify his pernicious occupation to anyone yet, strangely, doesn't come across as an evil man. Simply as a professional doing his job. The French police inspector is wonderfully underplayed and is as far away from the he-breaks-the-rules-but-he-gets-the-job-done cliche as you can possibly imagine. He is first seen attending to his pigeons and upon being told he is being put on the case simply says "Oh God..."....
Zimmemann's direction is great and the scenes are beautifully photographed - particularly in Paris.
This is an all-time great film. Definitely in my top ten. I suppose I must put something in negative so it makes for a balanced review so errr.... I think the French minister is wearing a very bad wig. Beyond that -marvelous.
"It must be hard to love an adopted child as much as your own" I'm an adopted child and that quote quite fit in my persona, but I'm not here to talk about me, I'm here to talk about Orphan and goes... Kate and John Coleman, VERA FARMIGA and PETER SAARSGARD, have two children, Danny, JIMMY BENNETT, and Max, ARYANA ENGINEER, who is deaf; a baby was still-born, and, still saddened by that loss, the Colemans decide to adopt an older child, settling on a 9-year-old orphan, Esther, ISABELLE FUHRMAN, who comes from Eastern Europe. Esther proves to be a problem child, manipulative, devious, jealous ? and possibly murderous, I feel very fit to Esther, except the murder thing. This horror film about an evil child is at times genuinely unsettling and contains a not-to-be-revealed twist which I certainly wasn?t expecting. Though the plot mechanics are familiar from dozens of similar films (The omen, The Bad Seed, The Good Son), the acting is unusually strong, especially ISABELLE FUHRMANN as the very nasty Esther and little ARYANA ENGINEER as Max. One of the good things about ORPHAN, which is directed by Jaume Collet-Sera, is that it takes itself quite seriously and manages to bring a surprising level of originality to the potentially familiar material. At two hours plus it?s much too long for this sort of exercise in suspense, but it?s several cuts (if I may use the word) above the average.
And so finally the slasher 'Holy Grail' has been re-discovered and after twenty-eight years of patience, we can finally see the nearly-complete version of this hugely popular early-eighties slasher.
Notorious for being the film most tortured by censors upon its initial release, My Bloody Valentine has become something of a cult classic with a large number of fans. Even the most lukewarm horror enthusiast must admit to being slightly excited by the prospect of witnessing all the notorious gore that has, up until now, only been seen in a set of studio stills. The previously available print was missing over 9 minutes of footage, which thankfully producer John Dunning has now located. The on-line campaign to get the full uncut copy restored and released was one of the largest of its kind and thanks to the efforts of the movie's legions of adoring fans, we now have a special edition disc with nearly all of the glorious splatter intact.
A small mining town in Canada has become famous over the years after a maniacal ex-miner went on a killing spree in the early sixties. He was the only survivor from a fatal accident on Valentine's night that stole the lives of numerous workers and left him having to survive by feeding on the corpses of his colleagues. Harry Warden murdered the supervisors that he considered responsible for the tragedy and stuffed their hearts into candy boxes to remind the townsfolk that their incompetence should never be forgiven. Twenty years later and the town is preparing for its first Valentine's dance since the gruesome massacre, but it seems that it is not only the decorations and romantic spirit that has returned. As a mutilated heart is sent to the local Sheriff with a gruesome warning that there will be more murders, it seems apparent that Harry Warden has come back once again....
My Bloody Valentine is certainly a fine example of all that gave the most popular eighties slashers a significant standing in the annals of horror cinema. It boasts a likable cast that make up for their lack of A-list dramatic credibility with a warmness and depth of character that although laughably cheesy, evokes sympathy from the audience. The love triangle between the three leads is an intriguing sub-plot and the script is strong enough to allow the characters to work their way into the hearts of viewers.
It can also lay claim to arguably the best arsenal of marketable gimmicks ever to be included in a single splatter feature and if the authentic calendar date doesn't induce your interest, then it's impossible to resist the excellent guise for the maniacal killer and the creepy mine location. The gas mask adds an extra dimension to the killer's essential-clichéd heavy breath and the pickaxe makes for an exquisite tool for gory slaughter. You can almost visualise the director's smile upon witnessing for the first time the awesome sight of his bogeyman strolling through the dimly-lighted shaft and stalking his intended victims. In terms of slasher visualisations, it's pure poetry-in-motion and Mihalka understandably milks the possibilities.
Mihalka is no John Carpenter, but he does an impressive job in building suspense and he creates one or two decent jolts. The cast are surprisingly good for complete amateurs and their above-average performances are a rare and welcomed bonus. It was a conscious decision from John Dunning, the producer, to use actors that boasted far more potential than they did impressive CVs, because he wanted to invest heavily in the special effects. Mihalka has said that people don't go to see a slasher movie to witness a 'name' actor. He is right in acknowledging the fact that the amount of money a producer would spend on such a performer just to see him get splattered on the wall is an entirely pointless exercise.
You only need to take a brief look at my review list to see that I am an avid 'slasher-fanatic', but My Bloody Valentine has never been amongst my favourites. I often wondered how the movie could have even been considered to be better than the likes of Intruder, The Prowling or even Curtains, because to me it felt like I wasn't watching the vision that Mihalka had initially intended. Now, with most of the gore intact, the film feels 'complete' and in its entirety it is a completely different concept. Despite popular belief, there were many early slashers that were stylishly produced and genuinely strong entries to the horror catalogue. My Bloody Valentine is one such feature and its well-deserving of its legion of admirers.
The gore effects are as decent as their reputation would lead you to believe and the movie credibly mixes approachable characters and mean-spirited mass-slaughter to create an excellent mix of moods. Unfortunately we are still missing Michael and Harriet's death scene, which was either a decision by Mihalka (perhaps it looked too fake?) or that particular footage was never recovered by Dunning. It doesn't really matter however, because finally we have a copy of My Bloody Valentine that has nearly everything that was intended and Sylvia's remarkably grisly slaughter and the notorious 'pick-axe through the face' are visions that are an iconic part of the whole slasher cycle.
If you are even a half-hearted fan of early eighties stalk and slash flicks then I urge you to part with your pennies for this excellent example of non-franchise slash with panache that sums up everything that was great about the early eighties domination. No collection is complete without this sitting on a shelf next to Joseph Zito's The Prowler and Mark Rosman's The House on Sorority Row. The Harry Warden legacy has finally come full circle.....
Rosemary's Baby
R
The Day of the Jackal
PG
Orphan
R
My Bloody Valentine
R
Notorious for being the film most tortured by censors upon its initial release, My Bloody Valentine has become something of a cult classic with a large number of fans. Even the most lukewarm horror enthusiast must admit to being slightly excited by the prospect of witnessing all the notorious gore that has, up until now, only been seen in a set of studio stills. The previously available print was missing over 9 minutes of footage, which thankfully producer John Dunning has now located. The on-line campaign to get the full uncut copy restored and released was one of the largest of its kind and thanks to the efforts of the movie's legions of adoring fans, we now have a special edition disc with nearly all of the glorious splatter intact. A small mining town in Canada has become famous over the years after a maniacal ex-miner went on a killing spree in the early sixties. He was the only survivor from a fatal accident on Valentine's night that stole the lives of numerous workers and left him having to survive by feeding on the corpses of his colleagues. Harry Warden murdered the supervisors that he considered responsible for the tragedy and stuffed their hearts into candy boxes to remind the townsfolk that their incompetence should never be forgiven. Twenty years later and the town is preparing for its first Valentine's dance since the gruesome massacre, but it seems that it is not only the decorations and romantic spirit that has returned. As a mutilated heart is sent to the local Sheriff with a gruesome warning that there will be more murders, it seems apparent that Harry Warden has come back once again.... My Bloody Valentine is certainly a fine example of all that gave the most popular eighties slashers a significant standing in the annals of horror cinema. It boasts a likable cast that make up for their lack of A-list dramatic credibility with a warmness and depth of character that although laughably cheesy, evokes sympathy from the audience. The love triangle between the three leads is an intriguing sub-plot and the script is strong enough to allow the characters to work their way into the hearts of viewers. It can also lay claim to arguably the best arsenal of marketable gimmicks ever to be included in a single splatter feature and if the authentic calendar date doesn't induce your interest, then it's impossible to resist the excellent guise for the maniacal killer and the creepy mine location. The gas mask adds an extra dimension to the killer's essential-clichéd heavy breath and the pickaxe makes for an exquisite tool for gory slaughter. You can almost visualise the director's smile upon witnessing for the first time the awesome sight of his bogeyman strolling through the dimly-lighted shaft and stalking his intended victims. In terms of slasher visualisations, it's pure poetry-in-motion and Mihalka understandably milks the possibilities. Mihalka is no John Carpenter, but he does an impressive job in building suspense and he creates one or two decent jolts. The cast are surprisingly good for complete amateurs and their above-average performances are a rare and welcomed bonus. It was a conscious decision from John Dunning, the producer, to use actors that boasted far more potential than they did impressive CVs, because he wanted to invest heavily in the special effects. Mihalka has said that people don't go to see a slasher movie to witness a 'name' actor. He is right in acknowledging the fact that the amount of money a producer would spend on such a performer just to see him get splattered on the wall is an entirely pointless exercise. You only need to take a brief look at my review list to see that I am an avid 'slasher-fanatic', but My Bloody Valentine has never been amongst my favourites. I often wondered how the movie could have even been considered to be better than the likes of Intruder, The Prowling or even Curtains, because to me it felt like I wasn't watching the vision that Mihalka had initially intended. Now, with most of the gore intact, the film feels 'complete' and in its entirety it is a completely different concept. Despite popular belief, there were many early slashers that were stylishly produced and genuinely strong entries to the horror catalogue. My Bloody Valentine is one such feature and its well-deserving of its legion of admirers. The gore effects are as decent as their reputation would lead you to believe and the movie credibly mixes approachable characters and mean-spirited mass-slaughter to create an excellent mix of moods. Unfortunately we are still missing Michael and Harriet's death scene, which was either a decision by Mihalka (perhaps it looked too fake?) or that particular footage was never recovered by Dunning. It doesn't really matter however, because finally we have a copy of My Bloody Valentine that has nearly everything that was intended and Sylvia's remarkably grisly slaughter and the notorious 'pick-axe through the face' are visions that are an iconic part of the whole slasher cycle. If you are even a half-hearted fan of early eighties stalk and slash flicks then I urge you to part with your pennies for this excellent example of non-franchise slash with panache that sums up everything that was great about the early eighties domination. No collection is complete without this sitting on a shelf next to Joseph Zito's The Prowler and Mark Rosman's The House on Sorority Row. The Harry Warden legacy has finally come full circle.....
