Knock Knock (1/5, Horrible)

Keanu Reeves + Eli Roth together. That sounds promising...Red Curtain Cinema decided to give a chance to a terrible actor and to a director known for its grotesque and black-humor approach. The result: a pathetic film.  

Any film from Eli Roth rhymes with hysteria, sadistic torture and psychological violence. He embraces once more these rules in his latest film. The result of it? A pretty boring film, with nothing to give and to value from. Even Keanu Reeves (what is he doing in here?), playing the role-model father of a happy american family cannot achieve any credible acting. The two psycho girls (portrated by Lorenza Izzo and Ana de Armas) are merely hysteric girls enjoying cruel practices and good music.

The only good thing from this film is the soundtrack. The songs have been carefully chosen to match lyrics along with the degradation of this man's life. As the movie goes on, the violence intensifies and the narrative looses sense. We feel this is once more another Hostel or Saw film. Do we really need another round like those? Not really. Those horror films are finished. Get over it Eli Roth. 

To conclude, a poor script with a very poor acting and a cool soundtrack. The ending is fun but cannot save this terrible film. Don't waste your time watching it, you'll regret it. 

Trailer:
                                   

Regression (3/5, Regular)

A thriller/horror film inspired by real events with a good acting from Ethan Hawke and Emma Watson. However it is a largely forgettable affair.

Screenwriter and Director Alejandro Amenábar goes back to its roots with this new thriller. Inspired by a wave of "satanic abuse" cases in the US during the 1980s, Regression puts at the center of the story a troubled cop and a young fragile woman with a dark story.  In this small town of the US, everyone has his dark deeds and no one is to be trusted. While Ethan Hawke's character slowly founder into this terrifying case, he looses control and his deepest fears will submerge. 

After Tesis and The Others, Amenábar showed his credentials as a director capable of keeping the viewer tense and confused. He developed once more the scheme of a story with mysteries and a final twist to leave everyone out of breath. However this final twist could be disappointing for some and original for others. That is up to the viewer. The acting is very convincing (especially Hawke showing different colors) along with a very grey and dark photography. It reminded us of Rosemary's Baby and The Omen.

An entertaining film that explores people's deepest fears but also the social elements embedded in the daily life of a small town. Spiritual beliefs and prejudices are strong. It reminds us that one of the deepest fears for the people isn't the fear of Satan or of Death but most of all, the fear of what does other people think of us. A film to be seen but to be forgotten pretty quick. 

Trailer: 

Maggie (4/5, Good)

An innovative approach for a classic topic: a beloved one ,slowly agonizing and entering into the dark shadow of Death, seen through the eyes of the father. Bold move from Schwarzenegger. 

In a near future, the world has been affected by a plague which turned people into zombies. Slowly recovering from the aftermath, people still infected by the disease are taken into quarantine. Farmer Wade (Schwarzenegger) refuses to take her infected daughter Maggie (Breslin) to the health authorities. Her daughter will slowly fall into the darkness of the disease and loose her humanity. Wade will be behind her into that path, but to what cost? 

This is not only an original approach to a classic dramatic framework (beloved one affected by a lethal disease) but also brings a new perspective into the zombie film genre. This time, people does not convert into zombies rapidly (the opposite of 28 days later, Dawn of the Dead) but slowly instead. The story is therefore more dramatic and less scary. The apocalyptic story inner in the zombie genre is delegated to be a mere background. 

We enjoyed very much the mise en scène: it adopts a documentary style to bring authenticity. The cinematography based on a shaky camera (mainstream today) is used for a dramatic purpose and we weren't bothered by it. The story is good even if the script fails at the end ( we already know what's going to happen but...should it have been that way?). The plat of resistance? The acting by Schwarzenegger and Breslin. We see this physical and psychological transformation from Maggie mainly through the deepening despair of the father. It is a chronicle of a death foretold. Bold move from Schwarzenegger, it is a hard role. Breslin is outstanding, she is the heart of the film. 

It is with a great surprise that we saw this film. This is one of the best roles from Schwarzenegger and he can add this one to his filmography with some proud. It is a small-budget film (most of it came from Schwarzenegger's big wallet) and a good film was made from it. Too bad the ending and some clichés but it does not undermine the audacious and original approach to a classic story. 

It Follows (5/5, Very Good)

We are experiencing a new boom with indie horror films. They shine by their originality whilst telling stories that gets scarier. Horror films faced a decade of decay. New emerging directors decided that it wouldn't be that way. It Follows is part of these new films.

Beautiful Jay (Maika Monroe) is living what any teenager should have at her 19-years old: sharing a flat with her childhood friends, going to school, dating a handsome man. However she will soon embrace the horror. After what it seemed to be an innocent sexual intercourse, she is starting to have visions about a figure that is following her. Only those who 'have it' can see 'it'. The best way to let this 'thing' not kill you is to pass 'it' through, but how? 

Directorial debut by David Robert Mitchell is one of the best we have seen in years. He is able to bring up our deepest fears without hurrying up and without being predictable. That is great quality coming from the horror genre. If uncertainty is part of the viewing experience, then the director achieved it. Horror films is the science of having to deal with the uncertainty: when is this evil going to hit? When is it going to show up? What is going to happen to the characters in the film? Mitchell is heavily influenced by the horror cinema of the 1970s such as with George A. Romero and John Carpenter. Shots that are similar to Night of the Living Dead, music with a John Carpenter touch. What a feast! 

It is very interesting to see as well that this curse is only sexually transmitted. Could it be an allegory for the current diseases in our society? It gives a new perspective to the horror genre. Sex is dangerous for the greedy teenagers of modern society. The film definitely has a certain level of pessimism regarding sex but also does not assume a specific stand. We can interpret everything that Jay is experiencing in our own way. This already gives depth to a script that are rare to find especially after the decadence of horror era with Saw and Paranormal Activity.

Once more, independent films show us they are a plethora of creativity. It gives a new impulse to a film industry that is always seeking new trends. It Follows is a new experience: there is no gore, there is no cheesy dialogues, there are no boring characters. They all have something to give and to think about. Let us say thank you David Mitchell and Maika Monroe for making us feel scared and tense in a lonely cinema room in Cineworld Haymarket. See it if you dare. 

Horns (2014) (3/5,regular)

Alexandre Aja's latest film is a mix of drama, fantastic and horror genre. The fact of mixing these all together into one feature requires a clear vision. Sometimes Aja assures us that he knows where he is taking us, sometimes we feel he doesn't.

It tells the story of Iggy (Daniel Radcliffe) who is suspected by everyone in his town that he killed kis beautiful girlfriend (Juno Temple). Claiming himself innocent, he is ripped by sorrow and loneliness. However his anger against the people that make him feel all alone triggers something evil. He wakes up one morning with horns. These affect his surrounding: people start to tell him their darkest secrets. Iggy takes this curse as an opportunity to know the truth: who killed his girlfriend?

Alexandre Aja has experience in horror movies ( Haute tension, Piranhas 3D) and he knows how to manoeuvre the camera in order to create tension. However he decided to put other 'inputs' into the story: drama through the lead character (with good acting by Radcliffe), a big pack of black humour and a small taint of romance. The result? Sometimes it is cliché and that messes up the whole horror genre Aja knows how to build. It also puts forward weaknesses in the script: too much twists and

Two highlights therefore: the grotesque with people showing their true colours and the soundtrack. We were amazed how well picked the songs were. Every song has a meaning and a purpose for the scene. We can thus say that the film gives us some good moments of laugh and tension and others with the feeling of deja vu".

 
Trailer:

  

Did you say scary movie?

We know, Halloween was a while ago. However scary movies are still relevant in the cinema! We thought for a while which films we would recommend you and we made a special short list. Our criteria was its ability to create tension, a (relative) good script and its originality. Turn off the lights, here we go. 

1) The Nameless (" Los Sin Nombre") (1999)

First film of Spanish director Jaume Balagueró (REC, Darkness).What a debut! It tells the story of Claudia (Emma Vilarasau) whose vanished daughter is found completely mutilated by the police and how she struggles to move on. One day she has a phone call from a desperate young girl claiming that she's her daughter and that ''They'' are going to kill her. Desperate to know the truth, Claudia leads an investigation with Massera (Karra Elejalde) a retired policeman. Red Curtain Cinema still remembers that final scene...


2) Dead End (2003)

Really good small-budget film by French film directors Jean-Baptiste Andrea and Fabrice Canepa. It tells a simple story: on his way to a Christmas dinner, Frank (the great Ray Wise) drives in an unknown road with his family. Supposed to be a shortcut, they get lost in a dark forest. Little by little, events will affect each member of the family and start to disappear.

That's all you need to know to watch this ''bijou''. Very good script and good acting (hard to find in a horror film).

3) The Evil Dead by Sam Raimi (1981)

 

Considered by many as one of the greatest horror films of all time. Such label was seen by producers and made an honorable remake (Evil Dead,2013). Directed by Sam Raimi, it was made with no money, with harsh filming conditions and many incidents on set but the result is a masterpiece. A spooky horror-film (with some gore and black humour) that makes it an inevitable reference. It is the story of friends going to a small cabin in the middle of a forest to spend the weekend. In there, they discover a tape recording along with a book. Evil emerges in the woods and Ash (the amazing Bruce Campbell) will have to fight. A must-see!

4) The Blair Witch Project (1999) 

Of course, everyone heard about this film.Cuban director Eduardo Sanchez and American Daniel Myrick started the trend of ''found footage'' (today, a concept widely used in horror films). Three students went into the woods in 1994 to investigate about the myth of a witch in the middle of nowhere in the US. A year later, the footage is found. Made with almost no money and harsh filming conditions,a great film was made. Scary until the end!

5) Martyrs (2008)

Very disturbing and violent film. It is not recommendable for sensitive souls. However its originality derives from the logic behind its psychological and physical violence. Hard to tell the story but it has a strong story and great actors. The film was so violent that it made a scandal in the Cannes Festival. However it is a great horror movie.


6) Mama (2012)

South-American horror movie! The story behind this film is incredible. Director Guillermo Del Toro saw a short-film made by Argentine Andrés Muschietti called "Mama". Very short but scary. Del Toro decided to produce a film for Mushietti and the result is this film. Not a gore-movie, horror movie amateurs can watch it. Solid story, scenes with tension, great actrices. A good horror film for a dark and cold night.