Respectable Evil Dead clone

 HOUSE (1986)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

I knew so little about "House," a haunted house tongue-in-cheek comedy from 1986, that I was really only aware of it starring the sincere-looking William Katt. He is one of those actors that sells sincerity, whether he believes it or not (oh, wow, just when I wrote that I realized his TV show "The Greatest American Hero" had that last line as one of its theme song lyrics). Pop culture reference aside, I approached "House" as a serious horror flick and, to my surprise, it was insanely funny. Then I realized the humor was not unintentional, this movie is supposed to be funny. It is bizarre and frequently humorous though it is not as dementedly high-pitched in inventiveness as "The Evil Dead" or its sequels were. 

Katt is a best-selling author named Roger Cobb who is sick and tired of writing horror novels - he would rather write about his traumatic experiences in Vietnam. And what better place to write about such experiences than in the very house where his aunt had recently hung herself? Ah, yes, perfect. Cobb has his share of personal problems like a child that had drowned in the very pool of the house he is occupying (is this house the most appropriate setting for writing a novel?) Let's not omit the fact that Cobb was once married to an actress (Kay Lenz) who is worried about his mental health. Roger also has a very nosy neighbor (George Wendt, dead-on perfect casting and extremely funny) who is a fan of Roger's books of course. A curious thing about Wendt's character. He lives in the house next door yet only sleeps in the second floor in a couch! And he takes phone calls there yet never once do we see the rest of his house! Should it matter? I guess not but if you pay close attention, he seems to live alone in a bedroom that looks like some sort of office. 

"House" has spooky-goings-on throughout including a poor man's H.R. Giger monster with tentacles in Roger's closet! There are other ugly creatures like Big Ben (Richard Moll), Roger's Vietnam buddy who holds a grudge against him - Moll looks like one of those Romero zombies from "Day of the Dead." In addition, the bathroom mirror is a portal to otherworldly beasties with wings! Some of the humor involving a decapitated monster's hand that Roger tries to hide from a beautiful woman next door is right out of "Evil Dead." Most of this movie owes more of a debt to "Evil Dead" than any other haunted house movie.

"House" is respectably comedic without ever getting gratuitously gross or gory. Katt is the ideal Everyman I suppose. You'll forget most of this movie after it is over but I can't say it won't leave you with a respectably silly grin on your face.  

Communication is universal

 CLOSE ENCOUNTERS 

OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)

An Appreciation by Jerry Saravia

It is still hard to fathom the experience of watching "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" back in the 70's on a big screen, and seeing it since on video. It is a wondrous, often enthralling film yet something about it still holds me back from seeing it as one of Steven Spielberg's crowning achievements. Maybe there is an emotional reserve to it, perhaps the characters don't strike me as memorably as those seen in "Jaws" or "E.T" or any other Spielberg film since "Close Encounters." That is not necessarily a detriment to the overall film because there is a degree of excellence to it in terms of pacing, sustained moments of mystery in elongated sequences where we are not sure if the aliens mean harm or not, familial conflict, and overall sense of joy and wonder during the last half hour when we witness the enormity of the alien mothership. 

"Close Encounters of the Third Kind" is exactly the type of encounters two key characters experience in the film. First is Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss), a testy lineworker who is often asked to work ridiculous hours in the middle of the night (asking for directions from passing motorists who tell him to get off the road, his most obscene reply to them is yelling "Turkey!"). He's a normal family man who is commissioned to fix electrical problems, unbeknownst to him the latest issues are caused by UFOs. Melinda Dillon plays a single mom named Jillian who has a young son and their house becomes a target of interest by these UFOs. The aliens kidnap the giddy son who is more than bemused by them in some of the most startling scenes of an invasive presence on a domestic home I have seen until Spielberg's own "E.T." Both are aware of an alien presence and Roy gets more than a bad sunburn on his face from those oppressive UFO light beams. Pretty soon whole communities witness these UFOs that do not look like the average flying saucers - they are flying ships of indeterminate size and shape with colorful lights (there is a miniscule ball of light that travels in formation with the other ships).  

"Close Encounters" also has scientists investigating these paranormal incidents such as the reemergence of 1940's World War II planes that had been missing since that decade or the discovery of the SS Cotopaxi in the middle of the Gobi desert! Many of the inhabitants of North India claim to have heard a distinct 5-tone musical code that came from the aliens - a chance to communicate to the humans. Francois Truffaut is a French scientist who has a smile that tells us he is optimistic about this hopeful encounter - he sees it as a peaceful transmission. 

As I said, the movie is glorious and often enchanting in terms of mood and exposition. Spielberg was already showing the mastery of sustaining interest by not revealing too much, too soon. The shot of Dreyfuss looking for directions in his truck with a flashlight at night as he motions a motorist in his rear to drive past him, not knowing of course that it is an alien ship that levitates, still gives me goosebumps. The scenes of the 3-year-old kid's sense of childlike wonder at these aliens and how they make his mechanical toys come to life foreshadows similar scenes in "E.T." - Cary Guffey as the kid is easily the most memorable character in the film and we believe his reactions and his precious smiles. The aliens are not visible till the end of the film and that in and of itself was a masterstroke - show them too soon and the mystery is lost.

Still, I found little to empathize with Dreyfuss - he is a great actor but he doesn't seem to register with me in this film. I understood his obsession with creating the vision in his head of Devil's Tower manifested by crudely using mashed potatoes, fence wiring and so on but his obsession turns his family away completely who understandably leave him. It is a different side to Spielberg than what he showed in the 80's and beyond - some of this could've been written with more intimacy between Dreyfuss and his wife, played with raw nerve by Teri Garr. So when he takes flight with the mothership at the end, I felt precious little emotion for him except knowing that this was a monumental cosmic adventure as it would be for anyone (The director's cut features the inside of the mothership). But when the alien communicates with the scientists by a hand gesture that complements the famous 5-tone music phrase, I felt a deeper understanding of Spielberg's intentions. Communication, no matter what planet you are from, is universal.    

The Coolly Distancing Factor

THE ICE STORM (1997)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Original 1997 Review

The 1970's remains the most fascinating decade of the last sixty years. It was time of political corruption, assassinations, funky clothes, mop tops, psychedelic music, blaxploitation cinema, subversive literature and films, etc. Films of the 90's continue to explore this decade in great detail from "Casino" to "Nixon" to "Dazed and Confused" to the current "Ice Storm," a delicate, delectable, irregular tragicomedy of family manners and mores.

The film's basic structure is patterned around Thanksgiving weekend in 1973 in the quaint little town of New Canaan, Connecticut. Kevin Kline stars as Ben Hood, a corporate executive and father to a semi-dysfunctional family where nobody quite listens to anyone else. Ben is not entirely satisfied with his
life and indulges in a less-than-stimulating affair with his beautiful neighbor, Jane (Sigourney Weaver). Ben's wife (the fantastic Joan Allen) is a frigid, repressed woman who seems to find no joy in her life except when she's stealing red lipstick from the local pharmacy or chatting with the local
minister. Their daughter (Christina Ricci) is affected by the Nixon campaign, steals candy bars from stores, and is developing hormonal desires towards her dazed boyfriend (Elijah Wood) and his tense brother (Adam Hann-Byrd).

"The Ice Storm" is essentially an observation of family life after the end of the Vietnam War and during the numerous liberation movements of that period. The country is beset by lies such as the Watergate debacle, and in the messiness of family life in typical suburbia. We see the traditional
Thanksgiving dinner; "key" parties where women pick up men to drive with by randomly picking keys from a bowl; and the teenagers who indulge in marihuana, sexual games, drinking, and playing with death, e.g., Elijah Wood walking on a diving board during an ice storm. These are all events and they are depicted with knowing clarity by director Ang Lee. Lee explores this territory better than any American film director might have, yet he does not bring us close to the characters - we remain
distanced from them and their troubles. Lee was the ideal director for "Sense and Sensibility" in showing repressed minds but this is set in the 70's, a time of liberation, not repression. The only fully developed character (and one whom we are not distanced from) is Ben's daughter played by the remarkable Ricci who brings a wry sense of humor to her precocious character - she has a
terrifically humorous moment where she dons a Nixon mask while trying to have sex with her boyfriend. The other characters are merely thin characterizations presented in mostly fleeting moments. Sigourney Weaver is especially playful as Jane, the sexy adulteress who gives sound advice to the blabbering Ben: 'I already have a husband. I don't need another,' but her character is shown only
intermittently. The relationship between Ben and his wife is well depicted but lacking in weight - they seem to drift in their lives without divulging many of their emotions or feelings. Perhaps that is the point, but it is not dealt with greater depth. There's a beautiful moment where Ben's wife sees her daughter riding a bicycle and she, for a moment, feels inner peace. Then she starts to ride a bike to feel some sense of "liberation." It's a terrific moment and it is one of the few moments to really strike an emotional chord.

Cinematographer Frederick Elmes ("Blue Velvet") does an astounding job of depicting this world with dark blue tones for the night scenes, and graying clouds making the days seems colorless. I love they way he dramatizes the ensuing ice storm complete with close-ups of a train's icy wheels making
contact with icy rails, and the frozen icicles on the tree's leaves. Ang Lee also enhances the oncoming climate with the constant weather reports of the danger ahead. This is also meant as a metaphor for the troubling family relations in New Canaan. But where are the internal emotions?

"The Ice Storm" is a very fine film and it is exquisitely made. It also has a wonderful cast, but it's often devoid of genuine feeling - the sentimental ending (parents can redeem themselves through their children) negates the somber, enigmatic mood that preceded it. If the film opted to tell its story
from the point-of-view of Christina Ricci, then this would have been a more complete picture of 1970's family life.

Stripped down Bond at his best

 SKYFALL (2012)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

"Skyfall" is stripped-down James Bond at his dirtiest. Weapons are not always in great supply for the superspy, and there's a climax involving a chapel and a burned-down dusty old house where young Jimmy Bond was from. In other words, several tropes of the usual Bond scenario are not always present here. The action fireworks are on overload as expected yet there is also a surprising amount of intimacy between James and the new leading ladies, and especially the new curiously charming villain who can, ah but we are getting ahead of ourselves. This is still James Bond at its best.

The grand M (the grand Judi Dench) has had Bond shot during a fight aboard a train in one of the most inventive prologues yet of any Bond film. Unfortunately, her MI6 headquarters has been bombed and, without Bond, her life and the lives of many other agents are in danger due to the download of an MI6 agent list on youtube!  She also stands to lose her job. No spoiler when it is clear that Bond (Daniel Craig, tougher and more lethal than ever) is not dead (despite M writing an obit) and he is ready to go back to work. Unfortunately, Bond does not pass his physical or any other tests. But you know 007 will bounce back soon enough.

The villain this time is Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem), a former MI6 agent who is seeking revenge against M. Silva had been tortured for months after M had had enough of Silva operating beyond his duties (something to do with hacking into China's top secret files). Now Silva is a cyberterrorist and has a mistress named Severine (Bérénice Marlohe), a prostitute who had been part of a sex slave ring. Severine wants out of Silva's firm grasp and hopes Bond will rescue her and kill Silva. Of course, one can't be too sure of her motives and Bérénice Marlohe is an exceptional actress who shows beauty and brains and the scared little girl inside (it is a marvelous performance) all in one tremendous scene. 

Bardem has an amazingly chilling introduction where he practically seduces Bond, or maybe just uses a homoerotic intimidation technique (hard to say for sure but it is also a stupendous scene). He challenges Bond to shoot Severine in a scene that is just as chilling. My one complaint is that when the chase is on after Silva is captured and escapes, the final confrontation is relatively underwhelming yet Bardem gives it oomph with a crazed look in his eyes that is haunting.

"Skyfall" is fast-paced, electrically charged James Bond fun with many scenes of Bond running, riding a motorcycle on tenement rooftops at top speeds or maneuvering a crane aboard a train that has to be seen to be believed. One other moment has Bond hanging on an elevator as it ascends to the top of a skyscraper - if you suffer from vertigo, be warned. Other than dangerous stunts and fireballs and machine gun fire and a couple of hungry Komodo dragons, there are also intimate moments between Bond and M (whom many agents refer to as mum) and the new women in his life. The aforementioned Severine is one, and there is also Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny, who has one tantalizing lovely and breathtakingly romantic scene where she helps Bond shave. 

"Skyfall" mirrors some of the explosive action of the "Mission Impossible" movies only this movie is not as over-the-top. The addition of director Sam Mendes on board gives this series a real jolt of excitement and some nifty new ideas, courtesy of writers Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan. "Skyfall" is not as hypnotic as "Casino Royale" nor is it thankfully as slight or as average as "The Quantum of Solace" yet it is on par with the best the series has to offer. Daniel Craig and the uniformly excellent cast (including a Albert Finney cameo) elevate it to the level of great pop art. 

Sonny's soul is beyond reach

THE APOSTLE (1997)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Original Review from 1997

Sonny Dewey is the most richly enigmatic character Robert Duvall has ever played - a Pentecostal preacher from Texas who sees himself as God's messenger yet he's also a sinner, a man prone to violence. "The Apostle" is Duvall's third directorial effort, and it is an uncompromising effort but it is not as successful a portrait of a torn man as I had expected.

At the start of the film, we see Sonny stopping to see the severe wreckage from a bad car accident. He runs over to a badly wounded driver and tells him that the Lord will save him. Somebody better tell Sonny that the Lord should save him, too. Sonny's wife (Farrah Fawcett) is about to divorce him, although he doesn't want to be separated from his kids. Eventually, Sonny takes out his anger on his wife's lover, a pastor, whom he knocks out with a baseball bat at his kids' baseball game. Knowing that he may face prison time, Sonny skips town and decides to rebaptize himself as E.F., the Apostle. In the process, he leaves behind his old mother (country singer June Carter Cash) and his two lovely
children in Texas.

Sonny migrates to a chiefly black bayou town called Lafayette in Louisiana where, within minutes, he casts a spell on the entire population. A DJ already knows him as "The Apostle" and lets Sonny advertise on the local radio station about finding some followers, as long as he doesn't speak in tongues. A young mechanic lets Sonny stay at his house and gives him a sports car. Sonny eventually convinces a retired local minister (John Beasley) to rebuild a church, and persuades many black churchgoers to join his congregation by giving away food supplies and by chanting with great energy on the air waves. He's a man impossible to resist and to dislike - a man eager to please God and all who follow Him. A secretary (Miranda Richardson) is also struck by his charisma, and begins dating him.

Sonny's past, however, continues to intrude upon his escape. His mother is dying, and his wife is ready to send the police after him since the pastor he conked in the head is in a coma. But Sonny is not going down without a fight - he's on God's side and always asks Him for advice.

The one question we're left with in "The Apostle" is just who is Sonny? As Kris Kristofferson once put it, he's a walking contradiction. Sonny loves God and seeks to carry out his Word, but he doesn't necessarily practice what he preaches. For starters, he's a man prone to violence considering he knocks out his wife's lover, and has a fist fight with a redneck racist (Billy Bob Thornton) at his new church. There are obviously demons that Sonny has to grapple with, but what are they? Where does his violent behavior stem from? I have known some ministers to do wild things and go to prison as punishment -
they are only human, after all - but what kind of man is Sonny beyond his wild acts of faith and his sermons?

The problem lies not with Duvall's performance, but with the various plot holes in the story. For one, why is he thrown out of his congregation in Texas when everyone seems to love him? Did his wife actually run it? And why does his wife leave him? There is something to suggest that Sonny is a philanderer but writer-director Duvall never dwells into it, or Sonny's past. 

"The Apostle" is an accomplished piece of filmmaking; it is well-acted and well-staged. The scenes in the churches where everyone preaches and sings to the Lord are dazzling and enticing to witness. An interesting sideline to the film is that most of the supporting players are actual churchgoers in Lafayette
bringing a level of authenticity that Hollywood rarely reaches. Particularly compelling is Robert Duvall who brings a certain dignity and humanity that should not go unrewarded or unnoticed - he's always on the move, and always dancing and praising the Lord with vigor. Also worth mentioning is the
ubiquitous Billy Bob Thornton as the redneck who has an incredible scene where he threatens to bulldoze Sonny's church and, right before our eyes, Sonny manages to convert him.

"The Apostle" is a fine film made in the same spirit and atmospheric look as Billy Bob Thornton's own directorial effort "Sling Blade," another tale set in the South. Both films succeed in documenting the people in the South without condescending them or presenting them as stereotypes. "The Apostle," however, is more likely to be remembered for Duvall's tour-de-force performance than anything else. Like "Kundun," another film about a spiritual leader, "The Apostle" leaves you with more questions than answers.

Good Man in a Bad Vampiric Time

FRIGHT NIGHT (1985)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

An undying pleasure awaits for those who like comedy-horror done with style and wit. One of the best vampire flicks in ages, "Fright Night" is grand entertainment - rollicking good fun with an expert cast and a daintily enjoyable script.

William Ragsdale stars as Charlie Brewster, a naive high-school student who suspects that his new next-door neighbor, Jerry Dandridge (Chris Sarandon), is a vampire. He sees Jerry luring prostitutes and call-girls to his house, even undressing them and biting their necks! Charlie is ever the voyeur, watching these acts of violence with his trusty binoculars, and is less attentive to his girlfriend, Amy (Amanda Bearse). Of course, when Charlie reports the unholy vampiric duties in the neighborhood to the police, he is disbelieved, even by washed-up actor, Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall), a former host of vampire flicks. Charlie's giggling, posturing, Jack Nicholson-like friend, Evil Ed (Stephen Geoffreys) is no help either.

There is an element of Anthony Perkins to William Ragsdale as Charlie in the way of his gestures, his frightened, sweaty face, and his aw-shucks mentality - they mirror Perkins completely. Ragsdale would have been a fitting replacement in the "Psycho" remake. The vampire, Jerry, as played by Chris Sarandon is suave, handsome, romantic, whistles "Strangers in the Night," and eats apples. He is not like any traditional vampire but he has charm, elegance, and is believably frightening at times. Jerry even has a roommate, Billy Cole (Jonathan Stark), who is not a vampire yet not entirely human either.

The camaraderie between Charlie, Amy, Evil Ed, and the older, wiser Peter Vincent is at the heart of "Fright Night" - without them, the film would be a futile exercise in gruesome special-effects. Their exchanges and witticisms make this a cut above the norm. There are the usual cliches about vampire lore, but all done with great humor. Consider the scene where Charlie seeks advice from Ed on how to destroy a vampire - Ed explains all the rules but with such relish that it seems all new and fresh. There's also a great early scene where Charlie meets Peter and tries to convince him that vampires do exist. McDowall brings a level of poignance to the scene, addressing how nobody believes in vampire movies anymore - "They prefer men in ski masks hacking up young virgins."

"Fright Night" also has its share of frightful scenes and some bloody, tongue-in-cheek special-effects. There are red-eyed wolves, female vampires with grotesquely big mouths, erotic club scenes (the dance between Sarandon and Bearse builds with sensual energy), skinless bats, hidden coffins, gallons of neon green blood, gothic houses surrounded by fog, and the usual brand of crosses, stakes, and vials of holy water. It all leads, of course, to the inevitable question of faith.

"Fright Night" becomes over-the-top towards the end and repetitious, but it is mostly a consistent balance of fright and fun. Sarandon and McDowall are perfectly cast - rising above all the horror with splendid, memorable performances. 1985 was not a bad year for comedy-horror and vice-versa. This film along with the cult classic "The Return of the Living Dead," "Critters," among others showed how much fun filmmakers could have with the genre. This show is a real treat to savor.

A World of Good

ULEE'S GOLD (1997)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

(Original review from 1997)

The late 60's and early 70's were arguably the most influential and revolutionary years of personal filmmaking in history. Therefore, there must be something said for the long-lost actors of that time who are suddenly popping out now and reinventing themselves. John Travolta is the most phenomenal of the

70's artifacts because he has come back stronger and better than ever. Peter Fonda is not really an icon (unless you consider his "Easy Rider" role to be one) but for the first time in twenty years, he gives a performance of such subtlety and strength that I became deeply overwhelmed.

"Ulee's Gold" stars Fonda as Ulee Jackson, a Florida beekeeper who is trying to hold a dysfunctional family together. He is a Vietnam veteran whose wife died several years ago, and now he has two granddaughters at home, a son in jail, and his bees to take care of. Ulee's older granddaughter is a brash teenager who wants her life to be separate from their supposed family circle - she truly
hates her mother for having left them. Ulee's jailed son begs him to pick up his sick, drugged wife (Christine Dunford) in Orlando since he's hoping to be out soon to join his family. Ulee is hesitant at first because she fled from her kids and has left him to raise them - Ulee is a righteous person who has
shielded himself from others even society (not unlike his daughter-in-law). Trouble is coming his way, though, when his son's thieving partners are searching for a stash of money hidden in Ulee's bee farm.

"Ulee's Gold" is written and directed by Victor Nunez ("Ruby in Paradise"), and as long as he sticks to Ulee's loss of love and mixed feelings about his family, the film is genuinely heartbreaking. However, when the rotten thieves show up packing pistols and molesting Ulee's older granddaughter, the film
briefly stops and only barely recovers. This whole subplot is meant to show Ulee's redemption and while it isn't manipulative, sentimental or sensational, it isn't particularly engaging or interesting either. The screenplay spends too much time dealing with these lowlifes in a been-there-done-that atmosphere. The moment where Ulee kicks the thieves' gun into the pond rather than shooting them with it is a moment of pure humanity but it is too brief to resonate. The rest of the film teeters on the melodramatic whereas the tightly structured first half of the film relied on simple human observation as its tactic.

The best moments in "Ulee's Gold" are the quiet ones: Ulee extracting honey from the bees in his workshop; his delicate bedtime stories with his innocent younger granddaughter (Vanessa Zima) who is inquisitive about her mother's condition; his developing relationship with a caring nurse (Patricia
Richardson); the bitterness between Ulee and his son in the prison scenes; and even the scenes where Ulee tries to reason with the thieves claiming they've done him "a world of good."

"Ulee's Gold" is fluidly directed by Nunez, and beautifully performed especially Fonda who brings a gleam and sense of regret in his eyes that is as pure as gold (he was nominated for an Oscar). Kudos must also go to Christine Dunford (should have been nominated) who is riveting to watch as she struggles through her self-destructive, drug-induced convulsions to becoming a mature woman and responsible mother who is full of regret as well. The dichotomy between Ulee and his daughter-in-law unmistakably presents them as people analogous in their loss of love and emotions. If the film stuck to these vivid, three-dimensional characters, it would have been a masterpiece. As it is, "Ulee's Gold" is only half of a great film, and ends abruptly just as the story starts to get more interesting.