Great Movie Scenes #013: Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)

For those who were expecting a legit horror movie for a Halloween post will be disappointed. But can a scene in a children’s movie count when it legitimately scares you? We fondly remember Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure for a variety of reasons. For Paul Reubens as the titular character, to Tim Burton’s debut as a filmmaker, to realizing the Alamo has no basement. But the one scene EVERYBODY remember about this movie is this:

Out and About in Culver: Sony Pictures

There are a lot of things I had to do in Los Angeles just on the off chance I will have to move back once my time at my new job ends. (Spoiler Alert: That’s coming sooner than you think. Yikes.) One of the big ‘to dos’ is do tours of all the major studios of Hollywood. Luckily there is one major studio right around the corner from me and it’s Sony Pictures. Now I could go on about their recent quality of flicks as of late. But I am not here to judge. I want to show you guys and gals what it is like to tour a major studio such as Sony. Not everything could be shown for privacy reasons. But let me tell you this is a great place to spend an afternoon and marvel the new and old of this company.

25 Favorite Films: Waking Life (2001)

There are few films that have stuck with me (hence the purpose of this ’25 Favorite Films’ series). It needs to take a lot for me to not only want to think about it but to also repeatedly view it. When I first sat down to watch Richard Linklater’s Waking Life I didn’t know what to expect other than it was animated. I also should stress this was the first time I ever watched a Linklater film and apart from some generic observations I was basically going into this blind. While this article is going to discuss and even show why Waking Life effected me personality I would heavily recommend you stop reading this and go out to view this. Trust me, it will change how you view on life.

Out and About in Venice

I’m not a beach kind of guy. The idea of laying on sand, with the mucky ocean, and a blazing sun just never appeals to me. There are much better ways for me to relax which is why you see so many posts regarding walking around. But there are a few places I love to go to when it comes close to the ocean. Back in Jersey places like Wildwood and Atlantic City were hotspots because there were a ton of things to do outside of the shore. A place like Venice Beach in LA reminds me a lot of those areas where I grew up. Lots of interesting visuals, people, and stores to look around. Hell it’s kinda like a place for the homeless to thrive and showcase their wares to the public. It is an ingenious way to get money if you really know how to create. Anyways, if you have never been to the area let me give you a taste of what there is to offer.

25 Favorite Films: The Quiet Earth (1985)

What would you do if you were the last person on Earth? The possibilities are seemingly endless and fiction has come a long way to showcase them. The most recent example, Will Smith’s I Am Legend, showed us a flawed way of how a major city would be if humanity were to disappear. I think people are fascinated by these kind of tales because we have this inherit nature of wondering what happened on this planet before us. There was a time where humans didn’t exist and at some point we are going going disappear and leave very little trace of our existence. If we were one of these many protagonists in fiction to be left alone we would more than likely wind up in some sort of feral state. While not going quite that route in 1985; Director Geoff Murphy showcases how insane we could go when we are the only ‘noise’ left.

Out and About in LA: The Fisher Museum

It’s time for yet another trip to one of the countless museums in Los Angeles. This time I went all the way to USC to partake in their free art museum called ‘The Fisher Museum of Art’. Just because something is free doesn’t mean it is bad; some of the best art I’ve seen came from free museums. This tiny little building had a pretty neat theme going to show us the dangers of pollution. Several artists made ‘found’ art by taking various pieces of pollution (plastic, toys, trash, etc) from out beaches and oceans and turned it into something beautiful. I wish I had this kind of creativity even when it comes to garbage. Most of the work I ever tried looks like it anyways. Before I bum myself out here is a sample of what is being showcased as you read this:

Out and About in LA: Wilshire BLVD Pt. 1

So work has been pretty hectic of late. Have not been able to go out and really appreciate the city as I did during the summer. But I still have days off and will still go out when I get the chance. Recently I went BACK to the LACMA and wanted to calm myself by appreciating some art. Afterwards I decided to venture Wilshire BLVD and see what it has to offer. Now I realize this is just one part of the boulevard and it will take a bit until I explore the entire thing in full. But in Museum Row, or Miracle Mile, there are a few things to keep notice of.

Great Movie Scenes #012: Antichrist (2009)

There is a scene in Lars Von Trier’s Antichrist that was a first. In it Charlotte Gainsbourg does something so heinous, so horrifying to Willem Dafoe that I…..Look I can’t do it. Not only would I be a monster showing it to YOU but I can’t think about this scene. It made me gag. It is the only time that I legitimately quit watching a movie cold. Never even went back to see how the thing ended. So instead let’s show this moment of the film which is creepy but not entirely gag inducing.

Creep (Review)

Since the start of this new decade it is quite apparent indie filmmakers have taken over the landscape. Sure, blockbusters and releases by major Directors will never die out, but this truly seems to be an age for the independent market. Not just independent studios mind you; dozens (if not hundreds at this point) of films have come out with a DIY effort. The Duplass Brothers, Mark and Jay, seem to be one of the heads of this new paradigm with Mark giving us yet another outing in Creep. Not only is Creep another successful outing for a Duplass but it is another showcase that independent is where you go for your craving in horror.

Creep follows Aaron (played by Director/Writer Patrick Brice), a cinematographer who goes to the woods to film eccentric Josepf (Mark Duplass). What follows are a series of moments and events that go from odd job to true nightmare for Aaron. Since this is a horror film of the ‘found footage’ type this reviewer was going in for the typical tropes and scares that come with it. While this film does not break new ground in terms of story structure, it must be said Brice and Duplass honestly make a tense film. They actually revolve the scares around the limitations of ‘found footage’ rather than filling the frame of jump scares or stupid, CGI creatures.

It also must be said that with Brice and Duplass being the only figures both in front of and behind the camera this film has a lot more care put into it. In front of the camera we will mostly see Duplass as this unnerving figure whose overall plan for this helpless cameraman gets clearer and sinister as the camera rolls. The film relies more on sort of twisting how the story goes to confuse the audience a bit. So expect a good amount of false leads and the two characters pointing out faults in narrative logic as it goes on. Having said that this film can be incredibly easy to read in terms of where it goes from point A to point B; so be prepared to fully see where the end leads if you are good at predictions.

It should be stressed again how these two are able to make a ‘found footage’ film scary to watch. Since this genre of horror has been played out pretty much anything you can think of has been done to death. While Creep does not change the game with this genre there are nice, subtle touches to keep it separate from the rest. Brice certainly has a great eye for shots so expect some excellent framing throughout and a good sense how a camera should naturally move around. There is also a good sense of pacing where Price and Duplass let the scenes breath and it is more unnerving to linger on moments rather than have quick editing.

Again, Creep is not the most original horror film nor does it do anything incredibly outrageous to change the game. But what Creep does is slight, almost unseen touches to make it an incredibly successful horror film. The performances are genuine, the camera work for a ‘found footage’ film is effective, and these two guys just understand how a film like this works. Creep is another testament to how today’s age of indie filmmaking is changing the landscape of movies. Cause even a slightly predictable movie like Creep can wind up being excellent if you just try a little bit harder.

The Nightmare (Review)

Our bodies can do a lot of weird things when we sleep. We dream, we can sleep walk, and we can literally scare ourselves to death. One thing that has always been fascinating though is sleep paralysis: where the body can literally keep us frozen despite being fully aware of what is going on. New documentarian Rodney Ascher felt there was a compelling story to tell in regards to this bizarre choice our bodies can make. In The Nightmare, Ascher does not give us a story but several to showcase how truly nightmarish it can be.

Instead of giving us a lecture on what makes sleep paralysis happen Ascher is more content giving us visual interpretation of the nightmares these people have. The film jumps from talking heads to actors recreating these moments which gives Ascher more breathing room to be creative. So get ready for nonstop moments of people in beds, pretending to be frozen in place, while actors covered in black slowly creep in front of them. This kind of structure allows Ascher to ratchet up the scares when it comes to things like the sound design or give us some unique camera angles. As someone who gets sleep paralysis from time to time, but not to such a terrible degree as these men and women, it becomes a wonder how any of them cope with such horrible visions.

Unfortunately the film starts to lose its draw after the first couple of retellings. There is no denying Ascher and his team took a lot of care into recreating these terrible visions. But the film moves at such a glacial place it starts to get boring once we see the same ‘shadow men’ and people starting wide eyed into the distance. In fact, it becomes apparent the human mind is not very creative when it comes to sleep paralysis. It feels like something out of a Stephen King novel where an omnipresent being hovers around all of these people. Apart from a few instances where someone’s nightmare goes off the rails the films becomes stagnant far too quickly.

There is no denying Rodney Ascher is a great, new voice for documentaries. With his previous film Room 237 and now The Nightmare he has a great sense of finding unique topics to cover. Unlike his last film though, there is not enough visual appeal to keep it going to the finish. Had this been an effort to make a short documentary, or in the very least cut down the number of participants, this could have had the recipe to be an effective combo of being a non-fiction horror film. As it is The Nightmare will probably be more effective seen in unrelated chunks online rather than its original intended form.