"I am the Nightrider. I'm a fuel injected suicide machine. I am the rocker, I am the roller, I am the out-of-controller!"
I LOVE that quote. It's spoken by the Nightrider as he evades the police force in post-apocalyptic Australia, and it's delivered perfectly. It's one of the first scenes in the film, and does it ever suck you in. The Nightrider rides in a psychotic joy that is mesmerizing. I was into this movie from that moment right until the end.
I think that the reason I liked this movie was the story. There wasn't anything about the acting, directing, or music that caught my eye. I'm not saying they were bad, and the fact that I did not notice them is a good indication that they were pretty good. After all isn't that the ultimate purpose of a movie, to tell you a story?
I was sucked into this world quite easily, and I could not help but be reminded of the video game Fallout. I'm sure Mad Max had a bit of influence on that.
Talking about influences actually, this movie had a similar feel to The Outlaw Josey Wales.
I don't have a lot to say really. I liked it a lot. I haven't seen the other movies in the trilogy(The Road Warrior and Beyond Thunderdome), I think I'll go give them a watch.
8 fiery car deaths out of 10
Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Mad Max(John)
This is a movie I hate saying i've never seen. I've seen Road Warrior quite a few times as well as Beyond Thunderdome. But I have never sat down and watched Mad Max. I'm glad I did.
The big draw for me about this film was the different take on the revenge movie. Almost all of the revenge films I've seen are structured the same way: something happens in the beginning that warrant revenge, then for the next hour to hour-and-a-half is the resolution. Personally, I get tired during these films. Normally, they peak early on and fail to deliver throughout the rest of the movie. Mad Max was not this way. Most of the movie is setup and the last little bit is the resolution which I think worked awesomely.
Mel Gibson did a good job in the lead role. He played very well the role of bad ass with a heart. The other notable character was Toe Cutter. He played a crazy man very well and I had no problem believing he was insane.
I didn't really believe that the story took place in a post apocalyptic Australia. Some set pieces were done very well and the characters were believable but overall, the setting really looked faux. I know the budget was low on this one, so it didn't bother me too much.
Overall, I'm glad I watched this one. I can now say i've seen the entire trilogy and I would recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it. The structure is different enough that it doesn't feel like your typical revenge movie and you get to see Mel Gibson in one of his first films.
I'd give it a 7.5 out of 10.
- John Murphy
The big draw for me about this film was the different take on the revenge movie. Almost all of the revenge films I've seen are structured the same way: something happens in the beginning that warrant revenge, then for the next hour to hour-and-a-half is the resolution. Personally, I get tired during these films. Normally, they peak early on and fail to deliver throughout the rest of the movie. Mad Max was not this way. Most of the movie is setup and the last little bit is the resolution which I think worked awesomely.
Mel Gibson did a good job in the lead role. He played very well the role of bad ass with a heart. The other notable character was Toe Cutter. He played a crazy man very well and I had no problem believing he was insane.
I didn't really believe that the story took place in a post apocalyptic Australia. Some set pieces were done very well and the characters were believable but overall, the setting really looked faux. I know the budget was low on this one, so it didn't bother me too much.
Overall, I'm glad I watched this one. I can now say i've seen the entire trilogy and I would recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it. The structure is different enough that it doesn't feel like your typical revenge movie and you get to see Mel Gibson in one of his first films.
I'd give it a 7.5 out of 10.
- John Murphy
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Mad Max
Origin: Australia (Crossroads, Kennedy Miller) 1979Length: 93 minutes
Format: Eastmancolor
Director: George Miller
Producer: Byron Kennedy
Screenplay: James McCausland, George Miller
Photography: David Eggby
Music: Brian May
Cast: Mel Gibson, Joanne Samuel, Hugh Keays-Byrne, Steve Bisley, Tim Burns, Roger Ward, Lisa Aldenhoven, David Bracks, Bertrand Cadart, David Cameron, Robina Chaffey, Stephen Clark, Mathew Constantine, Jerry Day, Reg Evans
Links: Mad Max Trailer, Mad Max Wiki
Although the 1981 film The Road Warrior - the second installment of writer/director George Miller's postapocalyptic "trilogy" (Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome followed, and a fourth film is also in the works)- tends to receive most of the critical acclaim, the jaw-dropping Mad Max, released two years earlie, is where it all started. For it was here that Miller first brought to the screen his hellish vision of a barren, gang ridden Australia, with the aid of a new young actor by the name of Mel Gibson.
Gibson was just 23 years old when he won the role of Max Rockatansky(as legend has it, Gibson auditioned the day after being in a bar fight and his distinctively black-and-blue face stuck in the mind of the casting director), and was such an unknown that when Mad Max was released in America, the preview trailer didn't even feature him but instead focused on the movie's explosions and car crashes. In retrospect, of course, Gibson's portrayal of a leather-jacketed antihero is an essential element of the picture.
Review coming soon...
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Matt)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is truly one of the classics of the horror genre. Most people alive today are familiar with the name of this movie. You can't even go into a haunted house anymore without hearing that infamous chainsaw revving up to come saw you into pieces. It's become a part of our very culture in that regard.
I had never seen the original movie before this viewing. I saw the re-make some months ago, but that's hardly the same movie and it was just ok. I have heard from a multitude of sources that the new one is a piece of crap compared to the original. I went in with high hopes and I have to say that this movie did not disappoint me much.
Let me start with my favorite part of the movie, its direction. In terms of actual story and characters this movie wasn't all that scary. The acting was actually terrible. It was so bad, in fact, that I found myself laughing a lot at some parts that I believe were intended to be scary. That said however, I found several parts of this film to be pretty intense, and this tension was the direct responsibility of the director's work. One scene that comes to mind as an example is when a character finds herself in a room littered with feathers and bones. The camera takes several minutes and just films closeups of these objects. That's it, just a few minutes of footage of stationary objects with creepy music/sound effects. However the way the camera is positioned, the timing of the music, the gentle swaying of the feathers or the bones hanging from strings. It freaked the heck out of me. Had I been in the right mood it would have been downright terrifying. It had the same effect on me that The Shining did years ago, and it's freaking creepy.
The music, if you can call it that, is another aspect of this movie that I thought was well done. It very dissonant (is that the right word?) and it causes you to be uncomfortable in a lot of situations that would not normally be scary at all. The music is awful, but it fits perfectly into the context of this movie. It's a little insane, just like the characters that are out here to scare you.
I also really like the idea that this family of cannibals regarded human life in the same way that the average human regards livestock. They don't hate people, but they don't mind killing them either. They need to eat, and to do that they have to kill people. It was interesting to me to see this philosophy applied to human life.
The movie isn't all happy times. There is basically no plot at all. We never find out why these teenagers are driving around. There is a lack of motive that makes it harder to feel sorry for these people getting killed. The acting is horrible. As I mentioned above it's so bad that it would pull me out of the movie and actually turn horror into comedy. There is also the general disposition of the characters towards making bad decisions that seems to be so prevalent in horror movies. Going to the creepy house looking for gasoline, running up stairs to get away, staying in the creepy feather and bone room for 5 minutes, etc.
I give this movie 8 chainsaw dances out of 10.
I had never seen the original movie before this viewing. I saw the re-make some months ago, but that's hardly the same movie and it was just ok. I have heard from a multitude of sources that the new one is a piece of crap compared to the original. I went in with high hopes and I have to say that this movie did not disappoint me much.
Let me start with my favorite part of the movie, its direction. In terms of actual story and characters this movie wasn't all that scary. The acting was actually terrible. It was so bad, in fact, that I found myself laughing a lot at some parts that I believe were intended to be scary. That said however, I found several parts of this film to be pretty intense, and this tension was the direct responsibility of the director's work. One scene that comes to mind as an example is when a character finds herself in a room littered with feathers and bones. The camera takes several minutes and just films closeups of these objects. That's it, just a few minutes of footage of stationary objects with creepy music/sound effects. However the way the camera is positioned, the timing of the music, the gentle swaying of the feathers or the bones hanging from strings. It freaked the heck out of me. Had I been in the right mood it would have been downright terrifying. It had the same effect on me that The Shining did years ago, and it's freaking creepy.
The music, if you can call it that, is another aspect of this movie that I thought was well done. It very dissonant (is that the right word?) and it causes you to be uncomfortable in a lot of situations that would not normally be scary at all. The music is awful, but it fits perfectly into the context of this movie. It's a little insane, just like the characters that are out here to scare you.
I also really like the idea that this family of cannibals regarded human life in the same way that the average human regards livestock. They don't hate people, but they don't mind killing them either. They need to eat, and to do that they have to kill people. It was interesting to me to see this philosophy applied to human life.
The movie isn't all happy times. There is basically no plot at all. We never find out why these teenagers are driving around. There is a lack of motive that makes it harder to feel sorry for these people getting killed. The acting is horrible. As I mentioned above it's so bad that it would pull me out of the movie and actually turn horror into comedy. There is also the general disposition of the characters towards making bad decisions that seems to be so prevalent in horror movies. Going to the creepy house looking for gasoline, running up stairs to get away, staying in the creepy feather and bone room for 5 minutes, etc.
I give this movie 8 chainsaw dances out of 10.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre(John)
This was a pretty freaky movie. I say this even after the movie was basically ruined by a friend of mine who thought it was the funniest thing since Bill Cosby. I can definitely see where basically every horror film since then has borrowed at least one thing from this film. Heck, House of 1000 Corpses could almost be considered a remake of this film.
The acting was subpar. Of course, there was no real need for Oscar winning performances anyway. However, I have to say, the leader of the cannibals definitely made me think he was insane. And Leatherface was pretty terrifying. The teenagers were the stereotypical travelers who you know are going to die before the film is over except maybe one.
The visuals were creepy. Skeletons laying all over the place, Leatherface's human skin mask, grandpa. And the fact that this film was made with only $60,000 makes the visuals and camera work even more impressive.
I wasn't scared watching the film. But, as I said, that portion was ruined for me. However, I don't think I would've been scared anyway. I think the scaryness has faded since the release. If i'd watched this in the 70s, I probably would've crapped my pants and left the theater. Today, however, we as movie watchers have been subjected to much more frightening things. Even so, I would definitely recommend watching this film just to see where some of the greats got their ideas.
I'll give it a 7 out of 10.
- John Murphy
The acting was subpar. Of course, there was no real need for Oscar winning performances anyway. However, I have to say, the leader of the cannibals definitely made me think he was insane. And Leatherface was pretty terrifying. The teenagers were the stereotypical travelers who you know are going to die before the film is over except maybe one.
The visuals were creepy. Skeletons laying all over the place, Leatherface's human skin mask, grandpa. And the fact that this film was made with only $60,000 makes the visuals and camera work even more impressive.
I wasn't scared watching the film. But, as I said, that portion was ruined for me. However, I don't think I would've been scared anyway. I think the scaryness has faded since the release. If i'd watched this in the 70s, I probably would've crapped my pants and left the theater. Today, however, we as movie watchers have been subjected to much more frightening things. Even so, I would definitely recommend watching this film just to see where some of the greats got their ideas.
I'll give it a 7 out of 10.
- John Murphy
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