THE ACCURSED

accursed

European folklore entwines with family melodrama in Elizabeta Vidovic and Kathryn Michelle’s claustrophobic horror The Accursed, which is absolutely not about gypsies or witchcraft. Except it is, and though neither of these things is referred to directly at any point, they are key elements to the story.

The opening credits refer to sisterly clans in The Balkans, three women who have control over the elements. One such clan, now in America, falls apart when Hana is caught cheating with Aishe’s man. In a struggle, Aishe is killed but not before she can utter a curse intended to wipe out Hana’s bloodline.

Fast forward a decade or two and Hana’s son is getting married. And despite Hana and her sister Naida’s best efforts, the curse is finally close to being fulfilled.

The Accursed is all about mood; a brooding, oppressive atmosphere that ebbs and flows throughout. Strong, yet subdued, performances add realism to character interactions as each slowly become aware of a looming threat, something spiritually malevolent and murderous stalking them.

All crucial, as there is a distinct lack of clarity to the narrative at times. Everything takes place over a couple of days, and the terms of the curse are clear enough, but there are languid moments throughout that while encouraging the viewer to think of witchcraft do little in advancing the plot. This may well be intentional, to develop that aura of murky mysticism, but serves to slow down a tale that is already meandering.

The Accursed is an impressive, at times unsettling watch, but lacks any moments of real terror to elevate it into something memorable.

The Accursed is released on DVD and digital on February 14th.

LADY IN A CAGE (1964)

lady cage

This obscure thriller is surprisingly nasty, making for a shocking watch. It’s at the level that you’d see in a low budget grindhouse flick, but this is a big studio picture, with a major star and one in the making.

Hollywood legend Olivia de Havilland is the titular lady, trapped in a home lift when the electric cuts. This leaves her helpless and her calls for help only attract a local bum who sees what he can pilfer from the place. He returns with one of his fences, but the pair (and our unfortunate victim) are made the victims of a group of hoodlums (led by James Caan in his first feature). They set about tormenting the trapped woman as well as torturing the hapless thieves.

Set in striking black and white by director Walter Grauman (who later helmed the celebrated TV movie Crowhaven Farm) and cinematographer Lee Garmes (who was behind the lens of the original Scarface), Lady in a Cage is a startling film with a lot going on. There’s a class war with de Havilland’s middle-class character clearly an easy target for both the down-and-out and the rough gang that predates the nasty edge of later films such as The Last House on the Left and The House on the Edge of the Park. While the violence and language aren’t as explicit as those films, it’s remarkably raw and shocking. Caan is as terrifying and brutal as David Hess was in the aforementioned movies, even if he does wear sandals. The level of nihilism is startling perfect.

Garmes’ photography brings in some really oppressive angles and we can practically feel the sweltering conditions our victim finds herself. The title sequence – made to look as though it’s by Saul Bass – sets the tone perfectly. It’s full of images of differing social classes, and there isn’t one person who appears to have a conscience. People ignore the cries for help and even de Havilland’s character is an overpowering, smothering mother. It’s a bold and impressive scenario for a studio film.

Imprint’s Blu-ray release isn’t as packed as some of their releases, but there are two brand new commentaries that provide great insight and contextualisation into a film that hasn’t been given the right amount of love over the years.

TAM LIN (1970)

tam lin

This overlooked and forgotten piece of witchy folk horror was the only film the legendary Roddy McDowall directed and leaves us thinking how much he would have impressed had he done more.

Based on a poem by Robert Burns, the titular character is renamed Tom Lynn for non-Gaelic audiences and is played splendidly by Ian McShane (American Gods). Tom is one of the many who occupy the mansion-like home of the bewitching Michaela Cazaret (Ava Gardner) and shares her bed as well as dwellings. One day, his head is turned by the local vicar’s daughter Janet (Stephanie Beacham), something that causes quite an upheaval to the status quo of the commune. Cazeret’s secretary (a wonderfully wily Richard Wattis in a rare appearance without his trademark glasses) hints that something deadly happened to people who had expressed their desire to leave.

McDowall directs in a confident and measured way, building up the tension and threat from a sedate start. The decadence of Cazeret’s followers is enhanced by including a brace of beautiful young actors who would go to become very familiar faces. We have Joanna Lumley, Madeline Smith, and Sinéad Cusack (whose father Cyril plays the vicar, dad to Beacham’s character). There’s also a fleeting appearance from a pre-Rocky Horror Peter Hinwood and pre-Withnail and I Bruce Robinson. Despite the starry cast, Tam Lin is a moody, absorbing piece. It’s very British and certainly of its time, but almost has a timeless quality. The Swinging Sixties spilt over into the early seventies for UK audiences, at least when it came to the film industry playing catch-up, but this doesn’t work against the film, instead, it adds to the uncanny nature of the story. For McDowall, it seems like it was his way of putting that period to bed. Literally.

The film was known as The Devil’s Widow in the US, a title that’s a little too on-the-nose, but works well. It was made at a time when older female actors were resorting to playing parts in so-called ‘hag horror’ pieces. Tam Lin presents this differently as Gardner’s ageing witch character is still attractive and definitely sexually active. It also goes further as the story progresses, as her beguiling charm becomes much more sinister.

 The Blu-ray, from the Australian boutique label Imprint, presents the film faultlessly. It’s backed up with a wealth of extra features that include a pair of impressive commentaries (including one from BFI Flipside curators Will Fowler and Vic Pratt), interviews with some of the stars, and an informative visual essay by Kat Ellinger. It’s an impressive collection to support a film that has been neglected for so long.

ALONE WITH YOU

alone with you

A romantic night with her partner ends in a nightmare of solitude and torment for Charlie (Emily Bennett, who is also the co-writer and co-director along with Justin Brooks). As her photographer girlfriend Simone (Emma Myles) is held up, she begins to prepare for a special night, avoiding appeals from her friend Thea (Dora Madison) to join her at a club and her mother (Barbara Crampton) to leave Simone. She isn’t happy with their relationship and is even more upset by the artfully nude photo that’s framed on the pair’s wall.

Bennett and Brooks have crafted a taut, claustrophobic psychological thriller that is constantly surprising and shocking. Horror stories told in primarily one location are not rare – it’s often a necessity in low budget filmmaking, but Alone With You gives viewers time to acclimatise themselves to the surroundings while ramping up the tension and slowly luring the audience into its secrets. Bennett’s acting is mesmerising, the weight of the movie on her shoulders but handling it masterfully. She’s presented with situations that could be supernatural or all psychological, or perhaps something even worse. There’s a quick deterioration of her mind as things progress and she finds that she’s unable to leave the flat. The door is stuck and there’s something covering the windows. A voice from one of the other apartments adds to her trauma.

It’s an absorbing film that shows what can be done with limited environments and Bennett’s performance is a tour de force. Well worth catching.

ALONE WITH YOU is in US theatres on February 4th, 2022 and On-Demand, Digital and DVD in the US on February 8th, 2022. Read our interview with the directors here. 

SHADOW IN THE CLOUD

cloud

Shadow in the Cloud puts its viewer straight into its story as Maude Garrett (Chloë Grace Moretz) boards The Fool’s Errand, a B-17 Flying Fortress, in hopes of transporting a confidential package across war-torn waters. However, it doesn’t go to plan for her as she has to earn the trust of a hard-headed, stubborn flight crew that are unaware of this strange assignment.

It quickly makes for a claustrophobic, paranoia-tinged watch as Maude is accidentally confined in the turret section, with her only communication being through a radio link with her fellow crewmates as the men decipher argumentatively between themselves in an effort to uncover her real purpose. After a mysterious – put on trial – first half that sees Chloë carry the movie, a dangerous ‘gremlin’ makes a surprise entrance, pulling the plane to pieces and attacking any passengers that dare to stand in its way. It’s here where the film is flipped on its head, turning into a palm-sweating, gravity-defying, explosive actioner. With the concept of the gremlin having been introduced in the era-appropriate animated training video that opens the movie, this nuisance of legend has been implemented very well, as it clearly holds metaphors of its own.

Director Roseanne Liang delivers a fun, genre-mashing, plot-twisting war film that also honours the fighter pilot heroes of its era.

Shadow in the Cloud is on DVD and digital now.

LET’S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH (1971)

scare jessica

One of the great unsung films of the 20th century, John Hancock’s Let’s Scare Jessica to Death is a film that is breathtakingly beautiful and incredibly haunting.

The central story is told as a flashback from the titular character (superbly portrayed by Zorha Lampert), who tells us that she’s not sure what parts she believes herself. After she’s released from a stay in an institution, her husband (Barton Heyman) and their friend (Kevin O’Connor) take Jessica away to a remote farmhouse. While there, they discover a girl (Mariclare Costello) who has been squatting there. In the following days, Jessica discovers a legend that the former owner of the house was rumoured to have been a vampire and drowned. A woman in a photograph they find in the attic has an uncanny resemblance to their uninvited guest.

Made in the wake of George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, Hancock’s film owes more in tone to the films of old Hollywood and is nearer to Carnival of Souls than The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It’s this almost languid pace that works in the movie’s favour. Lampert’s Jessica is pitch-perfect. As unsure of her rationale as we are and this makes the story all the more engaging.

This Blu-ray release, from Australia’s Imprint label, is packed with enough extra features to give you a deep dive into the mechanics of the film, with no fewer than three informative commentaries (including one from the director alongside producer Bill Badalato) and an interview with composer Orville Stoeber, whose ethereal score is sublime. If you’re already a fan of the film, there’s enough here to satiate any appetite you might have for more. If you’ve never seen it, rectify it as soon as you can.

WARRIORS TWO (1978) / THE PRODIGAL SON (1981)

warriors two

Sammo Hung’s double love letter to Wing Chun Kung Fu, features in the latest release from Eureka. The films and accompanying extras are a must-have for fans of the genre, however, if you already own the Hong Kong Legends versions, there is little extra to enjoy here. 

Both films are 2K restorations and feature the real-life character of Leung Jan – Warriors Two (1978), features an older version of the character, who agrees to teach the fantastically named Casanova Wong (a Korean super-kicker) the art of Wing Chun, which he must utilise, with the help of his fellow student Fei Chun (the loveable Sammo), to defeat an evil crime boss who has taken over the town. The choreography and stunt work emanating from this troupe of actors is some of the finest of the genre. The Prodigal Son (1981) is a starring vehicle for Sammo’s regular stunt man and opera alumni Yuen Biao. Yuen plays a younger version of the character, pampered by his family, who pay opponents to lose to him. When an opera performer and Wing Chun master, played by the great Lam Ching-ying, won’t take the bait, Leung Jan tries to become his student, as they clash with a Kung Fu master with royal connections (Frankie Chan). Sammo directs but only features in an extended cameo, but the brutal choreography, splashes of humour and opera setting are permeated with his DNA.

Warriors Two features two commentaries – the Cantonese original version has Frank Djeng and actor Bobby Samuels, while the English dub has Mike Leeder and Arne Venema. The latter talks less about the scenes in the film but displays a fantastic knowledge of Hong Kong cinema and its weird and wacky components. It also has a making-of feature, which is the same as the Hong Kong Legends version. The Prodigal Son has the same characters on commentary and features archival interviews from Sammo, Yuen and Wing Chun advisor – Guy Lai. Yuen Biao’s interview is especially interesting as he details how they went to study martial arts in Korea. Again, many of these interviews have previously been used on other releases. Finally, the disc contains a fun feature with Wing Chun teacher Alex Richter, in which he discusses the art and gives some demonstrations. A solid release, but if you already own these films there’s no major reason to upgrade, but if you don’t, buy this package immediately!

Warriors Two and The Prodigal Son: Two Films By Sammo Hung is available on Blu-ray from Eureka now. 

FROM BELOW

from below

Person or persons find themselves stranded in shark-infested waters. The Shallows? 47 Metres Down? Great White? Well, continuing down this well-swum channel comes From Below, originally titled The Requin, and it’s pretty much what you’d expect.

So, there’s screaming, sharks and swimming… why mess with the formula?

Jaelyn (Alicia Silverstone) and Kyle (James Tupper) are on an idyllic Vietnam retreat to help them work through a recent family tragedy. When a monsoon hits the resort, their pier-based chalet is swept away, leaving Kyle injured and the couple lost at sea.

For a film originally titled quite literally The Shark – Requin is shark in French – there’s not an awful lot of the toothy predator in Le-Van Kiet’s aquatic adversity. Nearly an hour of recriminations, falling ins and outs, and Silverstone’s increasingly irritating shrieking passes before a threatening fish finally makes an appearance. Cue more shrieking.

The trouble with not deviating from the formula is that things quickly become rather bland. Other filmmakers played around with the sub-genre, creating new if not entirely original scenarios that at least generated some intrigue. Kiet has instead stuck rigidly to the premise. And done so with a heavy reliance on VFX shots – almost 1,000 reportedly – and you can see every single unconvincing one; you’ll encounter more realistic sharks in Finding Nemo.

Sadly, with the scary fish reduced to cameo roles, the primary reason you’re watching is absent for long periods. But if Alicia Silverstone gazing forlornly through CGI smoke and screaming a lot is your thing, then From Below is for you.

Watch From Below on Altitude.film and other digital platforms from February 7th and on DVD from February 21st

RESIDENT EVIL: WELCOME TO RACOON CITY

There’s clearly a lot of love behind the camera of Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City. This reboot is intended as a love letter to Capcom’s original game series, supposedly taking the franchise back to its roots by almost directly adapting the first two games. Everyone involved is a huge fan of the series. But that doesn’t make Welcome to Raccoon City a good film. Quite the opposite, sadly.

The fact that we have yet another bad Resident Evil movie (even though there is some campy fun to be had in the Alice series) will be a disappointment to many, given the series’ potential.  But Welcome to Raccoon City, for all its nods and Easter eggs, does very little right in the way of actually being a good film. For one thing, it’s extremely dull. Very little of consequence happens in the first hour, and the atmosphere that director Johannes Roberts builds (which is admittedly rather solid in the first few scenes) is lost when he refuses to escalate anything until the very end of the film, by which time it’s too late.

Although the cast all put in some decent performances, the material they’re working with is weak. These characters are mere whispers of actual people, and virtually impossible to connect to on almost any level. Throw in a bunch of needless explosions, ugly CGI, unexplained plot points that make no sense to people who haven’t played the games, and the total lack of an ending, and we’re left with a mess that even some decent zombie prosthetics and a cast as hot as this one can’t save. A shame.

RESIDENT EVIL: WELCOME TO RACOON CITY is released on DVD, Blu-ray, 4K UHD February 7th

HOFFMAN [1970] [UK Limited Edition Blu-ray]

hoffman

From Powerhouse Films, the movie that Peter Sellers hated so much he tried to erase it entirely receives a welcome Blu-ray debut. Sellers half-succeeded in this angry endeavour for censorship, given that Hoffman, one of the comedian’s few dramatic films, has existed for over 50 years in near obscurity and is even skimmed over or dismissed by loyalists of the late actor. This is fair game given the film’s questionable subject matter, stilted script, and titular character – Benjamin Hoffman – the kind of man most people would rather not see Sellers portray, including Sellers himself.

Indeed, wealthy businessman Hoffman is selfish, scheming, and manipulative. But is this only because he is lonely, repressed and frustrated? Director Alvin Rakoff seeks to explore this question and ultimately create a sympathetic character. Rakoff had his work cut out, given the plot revolves around Hoffman’s sleazy extortion of his young secretary, Janet (Sinéad Cusack). He has proof of her boyfriend’s criminal doings and uses it to his advantage, blackmailing the callow Ms Smith to spend a week with him at his London apartment, where he admits his obsession over her in numerous speeches that are as genuine as they are creepy and desperate. Despite Sellers’ best efforts at a nuanced performance, Hoffman doesn’t eventually become the tragic hero the filmmakers want him to be.

The idea to explore Hoffman’s psyche and have Ms Smith warm to him as the days progress isn’t convincingly played out. Granted, the idea of turning a despicable character like this into a relatable one is an uphill struggle, but the script is thin and repetitive, never excelling past its stage play origins and never giving its characters interesting scenarios where they are able to believably grow closer. Having said that, Powerhouse Films handle this release with its usual care, treating film fans with insightful special features and making this misguided but notable movie a worthwhile release.

HOFFMAN is out on Blu-ray now