To Boldly Go Where Ollie Hasn't Gone Before

[dotinthesky]

Star Trek, Dir. J. J. Abrams, 2009
I saw this with my film club (Kevin, desayuno_ingles, sushidog) and Victor from Big Brother 5. From our seats a few rows behind Victor, I noticed he was as horrified as me by the constant conversation and noise in the cinema. That's because most people couldn't contain themselves with the action and humor on screen, which I guess is a testament to the film's success. I kept thinking "oh, I wonder what will happen in next week's episode", to then be reminded that all this character introduction and set up will only be continued next year. Spock stole all the scenes, Simon Pegg had bad timing, and Kirk was a mixture of Luke Skywalker, Luke Perry 90210 and a punch bag. The action scenes were brilliant and the special effects (black holes, planets, space ships) were frequently gorgeous to watch. While you wait for the sequel, why not watch Star Trek: Phase II (a.k.a. the future of television).



The Innocents, Dir. Jack Clayton, 1961
Why haven't I seen this before? Why, why, why? And why did I watch this by myself at night? Spooky mansions, creepy children, a sexually repressed governess and a screenplay by Truman Capote that lays heavy into the narrow-minded religious mind and the horrors that can lurk in the corner of our eyes - there's something here for everyone. It's like the long lost sibling to The Haunting, from 1963. It's based on Henry James' classic The Turn of the Screw, brought to life through beautiful black & white cinematography. If ghosts do exist then I have no doubt they look and behave exactly like the ones in this film.




Suspiria, Dir. Dario Argento, 1977
A good example of a beautiful failure. It's a visual feast for the eyes, with some crazy ass set design that made me grateful I hadn't smoked a joint before watching it. I could practically feel the walls that made up the strange dance school where things go chop-chop in the night pulsing with evil. The story, editing and acting, however, were a bit pants. Its influence on popular culture is noticeable too; I can see where Quentin Tarantino and Pedro Almodovar got some of their inspiration, as well as the Hostel films and even the composer for the Harry Potter soundtrack. Kevin gave up on it after ten minutes because of the bad dubbing.

Comments

[blu-bear.livejournal.com]

I had to write a whole 2500 word essay on The Turn of the Screw earlier in the year. We could pick what we compared it to - many chose The Innocents, some The Others. I chose Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde as horror stories that were metaphors for madness.

Good film though! I enjoyed studying the book and the film.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

I'd like to read your essay if you don't mind!

[blu-bear.livejournal.com]

Yeah sure. Have sent it to your hotmails :-)

[blu-bear.livejournal.com]

-s

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Whah? I don't have a hotmail account!

[blu-bear.livejournal.com]

Oh.. But I'm sure you gave me one to use on msn??

Woops. Wanna facebook me your add?

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

I'll email you and then you can reply to it. Cheers!

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Victor seemed to be on a date too.

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

The Innocents is excellent (plus it has Peter Wyngarde in it, who was so good in a) The Avengers episode "a touch of brimstone", and b) the film Night of the Eagle, which was based on Fritz Leiber's story "Conjure Wife").

Watching The Others when it came out I was struck by how much the whole film (and a lot of Nicole Kidman's performance) owed to The Innocents.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

They even refer to the ghosts in The Innocents as "The Others", which I think says it all.

And little Miles was one of the creepy kids in "Village of the Damned"!

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

It doesn't make The Others any less good, though, I thought it was flawless apart from the Christopher Ecclestone bit which gave the whole thing away. I also didn't recognise Keith Allen, which is a bonus.

The only problem with Village of the Damned (and there really only is the one problem) is the platinum blonde wigs - some are good, but some look like sci-fi mop heads. George Sanders - one of the most urbane actors ever to walk this earth.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

It doesn't make The Others any less good, though,

Oh, I didn't mean to imply it was less good - only that it wore its influences on its title. I really liked The Others - actually one of the few times I jumped out of my seat while watching a film!

I still haven't seen the original Village (gave the re-make a try but turned off the telly 10 minutes into it.) Do you recommend a rental or should I wait for it to reappear on the telly?

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

It'll be on telly again. It's always turning up on TCM.

[sallypointzero.livejournal.com]

http://sallypointzero.livejournal.com/198287.html
That's one of my favourite 5 films of all time! (ditto Turn of the Screw top of books list)

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Yes, I absolutely love it too after just seeing it. I want to own it on DVD.

[sbeth76.livejournal.com]

The Innocents is completely amazing. I love it so much. Suspiria is lovely to look at. I don't worry about the crappy acting (or crappy dancing). I love the costumes, the colors, the sets, the effects. The music is perfect for it. I didn't worry about the quality of Star Trek that much - I was too busy enjoying it.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

I wanted to fully enjoy Star Trek but I was too distracted by the noise in the cinema and by a guy in front of me with big hair. I might try to see it again at a cheap, and empty, matinee.

[oatmeal-texas.livejournal.com]

I love Suspiria! I even love the bad dubbing, which only adds to the charm! Your Kevin is a philistine!

[petercampbell.livejournal.com]

The Innocents is just an amazing film (and the Turn of the Screw an amazing novella). It's got so many distinctly unhealthy overtones. There's the Benjamin Britten opera of the same name too which brings at least a few of those themes to the fore (it's a great piece of work as well)