MOVIE REVIEW: High-Rise

High-Rise (2016)

Drama

Directed By: Ben Wheatley

Dystopian storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to get a point across, if done right. FIlms like They Live!, Repo Man, and Children of Men get across a profound message about the societal age they are reflecting, What happens though when you take a story of dystopia from our past and give it to us in the present? Do the problems feel old and outdated or have we grown so little in some ways that the story feels as fresh today as it did back in, say, 1975? Director Ben Wheatley's adaptation of the J.G. Ballard book High-Rise asks us these questions as we watch a 1970's apartment building slowly descend into madness. 

Dr. Laing (Tom Hiddleston) has just moved into a new flat in a state of the art high-rise building designed by famed architect Anthony Royal (Jeremy Irons). It's to be the living space of the future, with all of their commodities available inside the building. From grocery stores to swimming pools this new way of living offers little need to go out into the real world. This idea spreads like wildfire in the minds of its tenants and in just a few months class warfare and a disassociation from reality leads the people to devolve into violent chaos. Closed off from the world the occupants of this high-rise experience first hand the high and lows of a caste system. 

Though the story takes place in the 70's, much of what occurs throughout feels like it could happen just as easily today. Aside from the blaring aesthetics of the film (Wheatley made sure to let us know this is the 70's) the story could have easily taken place in present time without changing much of the plot. The high-rise building is basically a mega-tower from the Dredd universe, just on a smaller scale and the mechanics of life inside don't differ all that much. The authorities don't come when tragedy occurs and the people on the top more or less control those who live on the bottom. 

In a day and age where we can get literally anything delivered to our doorstep, the idea of the changing mentality of humans when the need to leave their homes dies seems more present than ever. Confined to the forty floors of this building the residents create their own system of living that is both progressive and regressive at the same time. While the core idea of the building is a giant leap forward the execution of it is complete regression into the age of class society. So much so that a large group of the elite on the top floors even dress in victorian age attire, as if to say they are the aristocrats of the modern age.

Tom Hiddleston leads an impressive cast as the main character Dr. Laing and as usual puts forth an incredible performance. We are sold on this world through the eyes of Laing and its Hiddleston's performance that brings it home. Populating the supporting characters around him are some wonderful talents as well, like Elisabeth Moss as the pregnant single mother Helen. Next to Hiddleston though Luke Evans gives the best performance of the film as Wilder, a slightly crazed filmmaker. His descent into madness is the most tracked throughout the story and what he brings to the character is what sells it all. 

I personally have not read the book on which this movie is based, but from what I have gathered the violence and depravity are key parts there as well. From the way the movie opens up and with Wheatley's past films being used as a basis I was expecting there to be more death and gore than we were given. Not that it takes away from the film though as the point is to show how these people got there, rather than what happens when they did. Also, when violence does happen you can be sure it is in a brutal fashion as we have come to expect from Mr. Wheatley.

The use of music in this film must be commended as well, the way he uses unfamiliar renditions of popular music and how he syncs it up with side by side events happening within the building is a large part of what sucked me into the story. That, and the insane visual beauty that was created to give this film a proper period feel. The story is set in the 1970's and aesthetically you are reminded of this throughout. From the film's use of color down to the wardrobe of each class it is blatantly clear where in time this story is taking place. 

The movie hooked me from the opening scene and kept me totally engaged for the entire two hours that came after. If you allow yourself to be swept up into this crazy world than you will take a ride through the madness of the human condition that rings just as true today as it did back in 1975. Wheatley has quickly made a name for himself as one of the most unique voices in film and High-Rise is no exception. My only regret is that I missed this on the big screen, it is a such a beautiful film visually that seeing it on a massive screen would have only improved my experience that much more. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!

MOVIE REVIEW: Clown

Clown (2016)

Fantasy, Horror

Directed By: Jon Watts

I am sure that a number of you reading this have a totally rational fear of clowns, and I get it, they are the epitome of creepy and anything with a permanent smile plastered on its face isn't to be trusted. This common phobia has been exploited throughout the history of literature and cinema ensuring that this fear be kept alive, and the directorial debut of Jon Watts takes it a step further. Simply titled Clown, the first feature from Watts gives us a new and interesting take on the circus centerpiece that will force audiences to second guess just how comfortable with clowns they really are.

Kent (Andy Powers) is a hard working and loving dad who wants nothing more than to make his son happy. Today that means he has to pay a clown to come to his son's birthday party to entertain him, because this kid has the creepiest obsession ever (clowns). When the guy they hired falls through, Kent decides to dress up himself using a strange old costume he found in the attic of a house he is currently trying to sell. Things get weird the next morning when he awakes still in costume only to find that this suit may not be so easy to get off of him. In fact, it seems that the suit is becoming a part of him. Reluctant of his new style he sets out to find out where this suit came from and how he can get it off however, the answers may not be what he is hoping to find.

I have never been one to claim to have a fear of clowns, but I have also never went out to defend them and there is no denying the inherent creepiness that comes with that painted face. Watts takes it to the next level though and instead of relying on an audience's already established fear he creates one for everyone to enjoy. In the film he establishes a new mythology for where the idea of a clown comes from and uses it to create a truly terrifying creature. The freshness of the idea keeps the viewer engaged throughout the story, adding a certain level of mystery to what's going on.

Despite what the title suggests this movie is a total creature feature as we watch the main character slowly turn into a hideous monster with sinister motives. Since it is a transformation story that also means there is a heavy amount of body horror as well, making this a movie that preys on so many of our biggest fears. It's one thing to watch a clown kill people, it's another thing to watch a man physically transform into a hideous clown creature who wants to eat your kid. 

Having a solid premise for a story doesn't ensure a good movie and with something like this execution is key. For the most part Clown hits all of its marks, it slows down in the middle of the second act but picks itself up for a blood soaked finale. The hook isn't as twisty as you might hope either but it fits the story Watts wanted to tell. A cool idea, and some fantastic make-up and practical effects are what carry the film and it is enough, but there a bit left to be desired here.

Andy powers takes up the lead role of Kent and does a solid job selling the horror of the transformation and the realization of what it means for him. Laura Allen covers the duties of his wife Meg doing a fine enough job but the acting power here comes from Peter Stormare, who unfortunately doesn't get as much screen time as he should. Playing the eccentric costume salesman he has some of the best acting moments of the film.

Having a delayed release in the sates means that this film got a huge build-up from the horror community. Anytime a film is held back fans begin to cook up theories as to why, usually leading to a huge hype around the film for being "too crazy". Clown certainly isn't a tame film by any standards but it also isn't doing anything we haven't seen before. They kill kids, that's why it was held back and when you see the movie it all seems silly that it happened. Though it may not live up to the hype created by some due to all of this, this is still a solid creature feature with some fantastic body horror and practical effects. I recommend any horror fan give this a shot, especially with the Halloween season quickly approaching.

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!

MOVIE REVIEW: I Am Not a Serial Killer

I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016)

Horror, Thriller, Sci-Fi

Directed By: Billy O'Brien

With horror currently owning the box office, the age old debate has once again been brought to the surface of whether or not horror is still thriving. Spoiler: it is, and it has been for years now- you just have to know where to look. While Don't Breathe is sitting at number one at the box office it feels like a good time to remind fans that great horror can be found at anytime streaming on VOD outlets. For example, you can currently go and stream the new horror thriller I Am Not a Serial Killer while it is still playing in a limited theatrical run. I did so and in turn was treated to a weird, original new story told from a point of view we don't get to experience too often. 

John Wayne Cleaver (Max Records) has been recently diagnosed as a sociopath by his therapist, and despite the titles negative connotations, he has owned his new identity. He knows he has issues and that if the perfect sequence of events were to happen he would probably end up killing someone. He doesn't want to hurt anybody, though, in fact, the idea couldn't be less appealing to John, but he knows the potential is there. He follows a strict set of rules to keep himself from getting to that point but when a serial killer pops up in his remote little town his entire world is turned upside down. It's made even worse when he makes a strange discovery about the person performing these heinous acts and he now feels an obligation to do something about it. 

Seeing this story unfold from the point of view of John, a diagnosed sociopath, is what makes this movie so enjoyable to watch. We are seeing an original take on a classic small town murder mystery, told through eyes we rarely get to view anything from. Watching John handle his condition is fascinating enough to carry its own movie and learning how he has crafted his own set of rules, and how each of those rules keeps his bad habits at bay is a just one of many clever angles this movie operates on. 

Take that premise and use it as a baseline to tell a murder mystery and it gives us a take with are unfamiliar with. John's vast knowledge of serial killers and how they work allow him to catch onto the trail of his town's new infamous celebrity fairly easily and what he finds is totally unexpected. You may think you have the movie figured out in the first act but when the twists start coming and the film takes a slight sci-fi turn the outcome of the movie becomes rather unpredictable. 

Despite its cool and original premise, I Am Not a Serial Killer is not without its flaws. Watching John navigate his mental state is fascinating at times and pretty much everything dealing with the killer itself is totally engaging, but the filler in between can be quite clunky. There were a handful of moments where I began to lose interest in what was happening in the scene, or what I was watching didn't play directly into the story and slightly lost my interest. They do their best to create the strange relationship between John and his mother, who is aware of his diagnosis, but it often times comes off as a passing thought. 

The film succeeds with a clever premise and great performances from its leads. Max Records owns his role as the sociopathic John Wayne Cleaver, his unsettling demeanor and way of carrying himself creates the eerie atmosphere that most of the story operates on. The real treat though is Christopher Lloyd, who plays John's creepy old neighbor Crowley. Lloyd turns in one of the best performances we have seen from him ages and it adds a gravitas you wouldn't expect from a flick like this.

This is exactly the type of movie that totally justifies the changing landscape of releasing horror films. Though this is a clever new horror thriller it isn't a movie you necessarily need to see on a big screen. Yes, every movie is enhanced by being seen in a theater but this is also the perfect kind of horror movie to just pop on a Sunday afternoon and be surprised by. It offers us a new point of view in which to view a horror story from, and for that alone, it is worth the price of a rental. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!

MOVIE REVIEW: Kubo and the Two Strings

Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)

Animation, Adventure, Family

Directed By: Travis Knight

Knowing the amount of work and dedication that goes into making a stop-motion animated film it is near impossible for me to see anything made this way and not get fully enraptured in the majesty of it all. So much tedious and highly detailed work that requires infinite patience goes into making these kinds of films and I am always amazed anyone has ever managed to make an entire feature film. There is no better producer of such stories than Laika studios, which originally started as Will Vinton studios, who are responsible for some of the most popular stop-motion films of all-time. These include The Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, and ParaNorman which are all incredible stories catered towards children yet seemingly written for the adults who take them. The latest from the studio, Kubo and the Two strings, furthers their reputation of making visually stunning and mentally stimulating movies that audiences of all ages can enjoy. 

One of the wonderful aspects of all the Laika films is that each one is vastly different from the last, being sure to never be a retread of what came before. Their latest is another giant step in that direction taking us into the world of ancient Japanese mythology. Kubo isn't like most young boys his age, he descends from a magical bloodline that bestows him with great power. When he learns that ancient forces are after him he must set out on a quest to find a mythical suit of armor that will give him the power needed to defeat those who would steal what belongs to him. Meeting some eccentric characters along the way he must find the power within him that is needed to defeat the evil powers that would separate him from those he loves. 

After their last feature film, The Boxtrolls, was met with a less than desired reaction from both fans and critics all eyes were on Kubo to bring back their A-list status. The first step was the look, Boxtrolls was a bleaker looking film set in a grimy turn of the century England and it proved to be less than pleasing aesthetically. Kubo takes full advantage of the sheer beauty of ancient Japan and crafts it into one of the studio's best looking films to date. From fantastic character designs to amazing set pieces the film is visually arresting from the opening frames until the last. I often times found myself in wonder and awe at how they managed to get some of these gorgeous shots.

All flash and no substance isn't the answer however and after the great underlying messages of both Coraline and ParaNorman I was looking for something special here. Though the story never gets too complicated it lays the perfect groundwork to drive home another great lesson in the end. I love that these laika films tend to deal with adult themes head on and put them into a context that a much younger audience can digest and learn from. The lesson at the heart of Kubo may seem slightly generic and on the nose but when you see how it all plays out you see it drive that message home in a light you may have not thought about it in. 

The studio may have only released four feature films so far but within those you can already see what the key to their success is, a strong main character. Coraline, ParaNorman, and Kubo are all named after their main character for a reason; they are the vessel within which we are to navigate these fantastical stories. Whereas The Boxtrolls has no strong central character and it is never made clear within who we are to view the events of that movie. We follow Kubo as he becomes the person he was meant to be by discovering what is truly important to him. 

Making his directorial debut, Travis Knight, who has been an animator with the studio ever since it was purchased by his father Phil Knight, proves that he isn't just here because daddy has ownership. He does a phenomenal job crafting a magical story of what family truly means and how growing up without the ones you need most can change everything. When I watch stop-motion I tend to examine every shot, mulling over the fact that every single second has to be planned out beforehand. Despite digital this one of the last forms of filmmaking that requires every shot to be as perfect as possible, you can only reshoot so much when you can film just seconds a day. 

As is usually the case with this studio, they have brought in a solid cast of high profile names to do voice acting. Unlike with most big studios however, they cast actors that are right for the roles and actually have them voice act. Charlize Theron, Matthew McConaughey, Ralph Fiennes, and George Takei all lend their voice talents to the movie, but it's young up and comer Art Parkinson who really brings it all. His work as the title character is what drives the film, as both Dakota Fanning and Kodi Smit-McPhee did before. 

The studio has a solid grasp on the stories they want to tell and how they want to tell them and I respect the heck out of the fact that they refuse to cater to the populace. They are making movies that on the surface have little or no mass appeal, yet once you dig into them you find a story that any person, of any age, gender, or race can find enjoyment in. I hope Kubo is just another in a long line of fantastic films from these guys, I know it will probably be another three years until we see their next but when the quality is consistently at this level that seems like so little to ask. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!

MOVIE REVIEW: Don't Breathe

Don't Breathe (2016)

Horror, Suspense

Directed By: Fede Alvarez

When I first saw writer/director Fede Alvarez take on the Evil Dead franchise three years ago I was blown away. It was one of the craziest horror experiences I had ever gotten to have on the big screen and even though it was technically a reboot of a beloved franchise, I could tell the guy behind the camera had something special to offer the horror world. He has a way of capturing the brutality of his carnage that makes it all feel totally real, even in a world of complete and utter insanity and if that wasn't displayed clear enough in his debut then his follow up film hammers that nail home in the biggest of ways. Don't Breathe, the second film from Fede Alvarez, is a master class in filmmaking that manages to capture the suspense and intensity we rarely get to see in movies in general.  

Focusing on a trio of petty thieves in the Detroit area, the movie couldn't have a more simple premise. Looking for a way out of their dump of a city Rocky (Jane Levy), her scummy boyfriend "Money" (Daniel Zovatto), and her good friend and literal "keys" to the operation Alex (Dylan Minnette) get a tip for a massive cash score that can single handedly get them out of their garbage lives. The job seems easy, the house belongs to an old man, and old blind man (Stephen Lang), who just happens to be sitting on a whole lot of cash. Unfortunately for our would be robbers this old timer still has some of his old military training up his sleeve and when the job goes wrong they wind up fighting just for a chance of survival, let alone the cash prize. 

The film plays as a hugely claustrophobic nightmare that takes little to no time getting into the bulk of the story. It takes all of fifteen minutes before they are in the house, tip-toeing around looking for a hidden stash. Fede doesn't take half of the film just to build the tension for a massive release, instead he gets the ball rolling fast by having them invade the house with the blind man still inside. Just knowing this makes the first ten minutes of rummaging in the dark so intense that when the first big payoff happens early on, you have already been gripping the edge of your seat in anticipation. From the moment they enter the home the suspense sucks you in entirely -and then the lights go out- creating one of the most intense and brilliantly shot horror sequences I have ever seen on the big screen. This movie is appropriately titled, as you rarely get a chance to breathe easy.

If you are wondering why it took three years to follow up his debut film it's made quite clear before the movie even starts, as Fede himself gives us a little message. He thanks us for coming to the movies but he also explains how he just simply wants to make good films that audiences will enjoy. He is making his movies into what they were meant to be, an experience. Between his Evil Dead and now this I have been given two of the best theater experiences I have ever had and it is because he cares more about how we feel in that dark room for ninety minutes than most anyone in attendance. This sentiment shines through his work and if it means I have to wait three years between each new Alvarez movie for this kind of quality then I am more than happy to do so. 

To get the best experience you can out of this go in with as little knowledge about it as possible. The trailers, as is so often the case, spoil just a little too much so if you have somehow avoided them keep doing so and go in cold. I'm sure most of you have seen the trailers though as they have been playing before countless movies this summer but even so, they hardly ruin the movie. There are a few big moments that would have been better served to see for the first time in the film but when something is made this masterfully it's near impossible for little details to ruin it all. 

Don't Breathe re-teams Jane Levy and Fede Alvarez and having now done two fantastic films with each other I wouldn't mind if the two kept going together. Levy is an incredible actor and her two vastly different roles in both Evil Dead and this prove she has huge range and can bring whatever Alvarez asks of her. His sophomore effort also brought him a little more star power in the form of the great Stephen Lang whose crazed performance brings much of the film's intensity. It was also nice to see Dylan Minnette, who impressed me a bunch in last October's Goosebump's movie, taking on some more serious fare. 

The latest from Fede Alvarez is just another in a rather long line of recent indie horror films made by incredible up and coming filmmakers that prove, while big studio movies may be in a bit of a rough spot, that the horror genre is in a way flourishing. The fact that this movie is in wide-release and is doing fantastic numbers is just further proof that not only is horror still as profitable as always, but that the people making it are just as talented as ever. In what many are calling a hugely disappointing summer of movies, us horror fans are being spoiled in the best of ways. Go see this on the biggest, loudest screen you can find and you'll be treated to one of the best movie going experiences of the summer. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies, you can find em anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!