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| Infinitely more interesting French poster for The Sentinel (1977) |
The Sentinel (1977)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076683/Fashion model Alison Parker (played by the stunningly beautiful Cristina Raines) moves into a new apartment and has to contend with some highly eccentric neighbors. Directror Michael Winner can be a bit hit or miss (Death Wish (1974), The Mechanic (1972), Dirty Weekend (1993) but here he's put his peculiar style to good use, The Sentinel is well-paced, suspenseful and effectively creepy– sometimes campy. I can honestly say it's the most satisfying Winner film I've seen so far, and check this out for a cast: Martin Balsam, John Carradine, Ava Gardner, Arthur Kennedy, Burgess Meredith, Eli Wallach, Chistopher Walken, Jeff Goldblum & Tom Berenger. 6 out 10
The Stone Tape (1972)
BBC TV movie featuring a team of electrical researchers who move in to carry out experiments at an old Victorian Mansion, only to discover that its being haunted by ghostly apparitions. Exceptionally stagey and with fairly primitive SFX, hasn't aged too well. 5 out of 10
The Cure (1997)
Japanese psych-horror mystery from director Kiyoshi Kurosawa. Hardboiled detective Kenichi Takabe investigates a series of grizzly murders, the perpetrators of which are all found at the scene of the crime, but with little recollection of their homicidal actions. It's a pretty original story, and would work best going in cold. The film is paced well, with some clever sound design, the whole thing has this unsettling, uniquely Japanese feel to it. However, it does get a little convoluted in the latter part and the ending left a little to be desired, still worth a watch though. 6 out of 10
Ghosts... of the Civil Dead (1988)
I mistakenly had this on my horror watchlist for a couple of years now, it's not a horror film, but it is suitably nasty in parts that I'm going to include it in my 31 day challenge. Ghosts… of the Civil Dead is the feature debut from Australian director John Hillcoat (The Proposition (2005), The Road (2009), Lawless (2012) and is the vaguely futuristic story of a lock-down at Central Industrial Prison, a maximum security facility situated somewhere out in the desert. The film is most notable for the involvement of Nick Cave, who co-wrote the script, worked his magic on a haunting blues score and even has a bit part in the movie as one of the more certifiable inmates.
The sudden outbreak of violence at the prison and subsequent lock-down has prompted the higher ups to order an investigation into the causes, the wardens are ordered to penalize the inmates by raiding their cells, confiscating drugs and confining prisoners to solitary. As the screws tighten, the tension mounts, paranoia and anxiety grip both prisoners and guards, until finally the truth behind the violence is revealed.
The film's narrative is told through a mixture of VO (by one of the senior wardens), title cards representing the chronology of events leading up to the lock-down and short vignettes between the prisoners and the guards. It's an interesting structure, at times a little confusing, but overall effectively illustrates the brutal micro society that exists within the facility. 6 out of 10
The sudden outbreak of violence at the prison and subsequent lock-down has prompted the higher ups to order an investigation into the causes, the wardens are ordered to penalize the inmates by raiding their cells, confiscating drugs and confining prisoners to solitary. As the screws tighten, the tension mounts, paranoia and anxiety grip both prisoners and guards, until finally the truth behind the violence is revealed.
The film's narrative is told through a mixture of VO (by one of the senior wardens), title cards representing the chronology of events leading up to the lock-down and short vignettes between the prisoners and the guards. It's an interesting structure, at times a little confusing, but overall effectively illustrates the brutal micro society that exists within the facility. 6 out of 10
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