The Craft
A newly formed coven of witches decide to use their witchly
powers for dastardly witchly deeds. This is a whole lot of fun, especially
Fairuza Balk as the demented harpy leading the central quartet. I really hope
that someone gets her cast in a solid comeback role soon.
Knightriders
The usual reason George Romero films succeed is because they’re
smart. Not intelligent necessarily, but smart. They know what they have to do
and they do it very well. Not so Knightriders which is a sprawling, ambitious,
strange gem in the wilderness. Anchored by a wondrous performance by Ed Harris
the movie tiptoes the line between idealistic Arthurian legend and quotidian
motorderby earthiness. Nobody talks about this one but they really, really
should.
Captain Blood
Errol Flynn was one charming motherfucker and while The
Adventures of Robin Hood is the better movie, this is the better Flynn. It’s
got a musculature missing from the more polished movie – a pleasant rawness
that sells both the action and the sexuality. Also, pirates!
The Black Pirate
More pirates! This time with the inimitable Douglas
Fairbanks, Sr.
Black Sunday
I love Bava. I really do. Blood and Black Lace is one of the
most gorgeous horror movies ever brought to the screen. But one rarely turns to
Bava for story or character or any of that nonsense. Well, not unless he’s got
Barbara Steele to do the heavy lifting. And as much as I will fawn on Bava for
the deep, musty, ecstatically Gothic look of the film, let’s also take some
time to celebrate one of the greatest horror actors of all time. Just look at
that face!
Blue
Naked Lunch
David Cronenberg’s Naked Lunch is probably not for everyone.
It’s stiff and mannered and odd for the sake of oddness. It is the most “literary”
of literary adaptations. But God do I adore this weird amalgamation of the
book, Cronenberg and the life of William S. Burroughs. It’s a bizarre mutant
creature that would not survive in the sun but it croons lovingly to the moon
at night.
Visitor Q
Takashi Miike’s brain is
composed of equal parts genius and heinous depravity. In Visitor Q it tilts dangerously
close to the latter. It’s Teorema on coke. Lots of coke. A vile, sadistic, enrapturing
masterpiece. A discovery, undoubtedly, but not for the faint of heart.
Malcolm X
Can we all agree that this is the greatest biopic of all
time? While other biopics latch on to the events of a person’s life, Malcolm X focuses
on the person himself and manages to create one of the most believable portraits
of a human being ever captured on film. Denzel Washington is phenomenal and
Spike Lee has rarely been better and I consider that a very big compliment.
Viola
It’s a 65 minute movie and I
don’t get the second half at all. But that first half made me as giddy and
hopped up on romance and theater and their various sinuous entanglements as
anything I’ve ever seen.
Next time on CINEC-DOW-KEY: Birdman, Mike Leigh biopic, Sex on the Beach and much more!
