Recommend a movie

[Silver Nemesis]

Late last year, I noticed that The Deep House was on sale. Naturally, I snapped it right up.

Obviously, the main gimmick of The Deep House is how it takes place mostly underwater. For that reason alone, the film is sort of a technical achievement. I can only imagine what a nightmare The Deep House must have been to shoot. Between the innumerable safety measures that must be taken to the sheer logistical problems that go in with filming underwater, this had to have been a very complicated production.

But the results are worth it, imo.

The Deep House creates a sense of claustrophobia and dread. Plus, the underwater setting creates new dramatic possibilities. When gravity is less of a factor, all kinds of new potential is unlocked to where there truly is no safety to be found.

If Wikipedia is any indication, The Deep House wasn't a runaway success. Which is a real shame too if you ask me, because this is a new approach to the archetypal haunted house story.

Highly recommended.

I'd never even heard of this movie before I saw it mentioned in this thread, but I was browsing Netflix last night and there it was. So, on your recommendation, I watched it.

It's one of the most unique haunted house films I've seen in years. I don't know how they shot it. Did they actually build those structures underwater, or were they CGI? Everything in the movie looked real (except that one fish that kept popping up), so I'm assuming it was mostly done with practical sets and effects. Either way, it's a visually striking movie. A part of me would rather not know if digital effects were involved, as it would spoil the illusion.

The claustrophobia is palpable, and the filmmakers do an excellent job of working the diving apparatus into the story to enhance the tension. For example, the drone that can detect movement, or the devices registering the protagonists' rapidly depleting oxygen levels. The plot and characters aren't anything special, but the technical novelty of filming almost the entire movie underwater compensates for that. It also avoids overstaying its welcome, clocking in at around 80 minutes minus the credits. That was the perfect running time for the story they were telling.

It reminded me of As Above, So Below (2014) – both being English-language horror movies set in France and starring an adventurous British-American couple, who descend into a claustrophobic environment where walls mysteriously appear to block their paths, and demonic apparitions haunt them as they try desperately to escape to the surface.

I'm a sucker for any sci-fi, fantasy or horror with an oceanic theme. And while The Deep House isn't quite oceanic it's still very much aquatic, so I'm glad I watched it.

Apparently lead actor James Jagger is the son of Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall. Everything connects back to Batman '89.

[thecolorsblend]

I'm a sucker for any sci-fi, fantasy or horror with an oceanic theme. And while The Deep House isn't quite oceanic it's still very much aquatic, so I'm glad I watched it.

Pretty much the same.

When I was a kid, we rented videos a lot. Almost every weekend.

While I can't defend the creative merits of Jaws: The Revenge now, I did enjoy it when I was little because the characters spend a lot of time tooling around in submersibles in that movie. I forget the details now because I haven't seen the movie since forever. And I certainly don't intend to rewatch it now.

But that was a huge selling point for me back then. Something about mixing the submersibles with underwater exploration with a monster shark on the loose appealed to me back in those days. Kids have a different threshold, I guess.

That same general phenomenon is at play with The Deep House. As you say, the characters are developed well enough. It wouldn't have taken much to deepen characters either. But I'm perfectly happy with what we get in the movie and I recommend it to all horror fans.

[The Joker]

While I can't defend the creative merits of Jaws: The Revenge now, I did enjoy it when I was little because the characters spend a lot of time tooling around in submersibles in that movie. I forget the details now because I haven't seen the movie since forever. And I certainly don't intend to rewatch it now.

Yeah, "Jaws: The Revenge" is ... not a good movie. However, I literally can't help but have some nostalgia for the film, in part due to the NES game. Which was largely based on "Revenge", and during my childhood, I remember playing the video game a lot. I mean, A LOT! Honestly, it's not what you would describe as a great game, but being in love with the IP ever since I can remember, along with the NES game not being all that difficult, ultimately made it very replayable to me.

I picked up Jaws 2-4 on blu ray this past Christmas Holiday season on GRUV for around $7 apiece. Which wasn't a bad deal, as I only had the sequels on DVD beforehand (and just recently bought the 4K of Jaws 2 as I have a pattern of behavior in re-buying the Jaws movies on physical media every single time a new edition comes out. I've lost count how many times I've purchased anniversary editions of the original Jaws, BTW. As Depeche Mode would say, I Just can't get enough haha). Though, the blu ray of "Jaws: The Revenge" does come with an "Extra" of the original U.S. ending (that's sometimes seen during television airings and was the ending for the NES game), as opposed to the international ending that's been made widely viewed for VHS/DVD releases.

[Silver Nemesis]

I bought the DVD set of Jaws 2-4 last year and watched them all again. One thing I'll say for The Revenge is that the ending is hilarious. It has a lot of unintentional comedy value, which in some ways elevates it above Jaws 3 for sheer entertainment value. Jaws 3 has some funny moments too, mainly owing to the terrible 3D effects, but the entire finale of Jaws 4 is comedy gold.

Caine's line delivery in the following clip always makes me laugh.

[The Joker]

Oh yeah, there's a lot of humor to be found in "Jaws the Revenge", and the finale is a perfect example of that. I especially like how Caine shows up on the boat, following being attacked by the shark after landing the plane in the ocean (and the plane is several yards from the boat), and his clothes are completely dry! 

[thecolorsblend]

Theater Of Blood. Bought it ages ago and am nearly finished with it now.

In short, a Shakespearean actor is fed up with being mistreated by critics. So, he takes his revenge on the critics one by one. And he uses Shakespeare as his theme.

Aside from proving that Vincent Price could've made a hell of a Shakespeare movie, I can't help but think that someone involved with this production had a grudge against critics. Lionheart, Price's character, is surely living out the revenge fantasy of a lot of slighted actors and creative types.

This is a fun movie. I don't completely understand where its rep is coming from. But Theater Of Blood is still an enjoyable revenge story.

And I'm wondering how long it'll take SN to come in here and kick some Theater Of Blood trivia on me.

[Silver Nemesis]

Theatre of Blood isn't a personal favourite of mine, but I still regard it as a classic of seventies horror. The premise of a pretentious actor murdering his critics using the most sadistic death scenes from Shakespeare's plays is such a great concept I'm surprised it wasn't done earlier. The dark humour and theme of revenge make it a good companion piece for The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971), and Alan Moore cited Price's characters in both of those films as having influenced the title character in V for Vendetta. Theatre of Blood is a smart self-aware horror film about life imitating art, and the patterning of the villains' MO after works of fiction makes it a precursor to movies like Tenebrae (1982), Scream (1996) and Urban Legend (1998). I'm astonished there hasn't been a remake yet, but I can't imagine it'll be much longer before some unimaginative producer rectifies that oversight.

Speaking of horror films, I have some recommendations.

I just got back from a trip to London for my cousin's wedding. Whenever I'm in London I have to commute on the underground, known colloquially as the Tube. I hate the Tube. I've hated it since I was a kid. I remember being scared of it the very first time I went to London, which would have been back in the late eighties or very early nineties. The London Underground is hot, greasy, loud and claustrophobic. Which makes it a great setting for scary stories. During World War II Londoners had to sleep down there to avoid the Luftwaffe. I can only imagine how horrible that must've been.

Anyway, travelling on the Tube again has prompted me to take stock of all the classic horror movies set against the backdrop of the London Underground. In the absence of a random horror movie thread, I thought I'd post the list here.

Firstly, an honourable mention goes to the 1968 Doctor Who serial The Web of Fear, which is widely regarded as one of the best stories of the Second Doctor era. The plot concerns an alien invasion of Earth conducted by the Great Intelligence using robot yetis and a mysterious web that smothers London. Most of the story takes place in the underground system, and the set designers did an admirable job of recreating the stations and tunnels on a shoestring budget. Many kids were terrified of going on the Tube after seeing this story.

Now moving on to horror movies set on the London Underground.

QUATERMASS AND THE PIT (1967)

I mentioned this in the Hammer Horror thread. It's the third and best instalment in Hammer's Quatermass trilogy, a series a science fiction horror films adapted from TV serials by Nigel Kneale. The story begins when workers digging a new tunnel of the London Underground discover the skull of a missing link from humanity's distant past. Adjacent to this they find what they initially think is an unexploded bomb, but which later turns out to be an ancient alien spaceship. Ghostly and demonic apparitions have long haunted the streets of London up above, and when the spaceship is finally opened the intensity of those manifestations escalates to apocalyptic levels.

Quatermass and the Pit influenced Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce (1985), which IIRC also has a brief scene on the London Underground during the climactic third act.

DEATH LINE (1972)

Donald Pleasence stars as a police inspector investigating the disappearance of a politician who vanished while commuting on the London Underground. His search leads him to discover the existence of a cannibalistic killer stalking the stations and tunnels of the Tube. Some scenes drag on longer than they need to, and the poster art depicting an entire tribe of subterranean mutant cannibals is misleading. There's only one killer. But aside from those issues, Death Line has aged well. I might even rank it among the ten best British horror films of the seventies. It's dark and gritty, and Pleasence's spirited performance offers a sardonic counterpoint to his more sombre turn as Dr. Loomis in the original Halloween.

I suspect Death Line might have inspired Clive Barker's short story 'The Midnight Meat Train', though that was set on the New York Subway rather than the London Tube. The young male lead in Death Line is played by American actor David Ladd, who in real life is the son of Hollywood star Alan Ladd and the half-brother of producer Alan Ladd Jr, who greenlit Star Wars. Christopher Lee also appears in a minor role. Meanwhile director Gary Sherman went on to helm Poltergeist III (1988), but I won't hold that against him.

Death Line is currently available to watch free on YouTube. Horror fans should give it a look.

AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON (1981)

Everyone's probably already seen this one, but I'm recommending it anyway. Most of the film has nothing to do with the Tube, but my favourite scene takes place in a London Underground station where a commuter is stalked by the titular werewolf. John Landis makes terrific use of the location in this sequence, and the reveal shot of the creature at the foot of the escalator is the best in the movie.

CREEP (2004)

Although this is not a remake, it is to all intents and purposes a rehash of Death Line. It stars Franka Potente and an unlikeable protagonist who gets trapped in a disused section of the London Underground where she's stalked by a deformed cannibalistic killer. It's not great. In fact it's the weakest film on this list. But it has a nasty flavour of urban realism that might appeal to those who like their horror gritty and raw. If anyone's hungry for a 21st century reimagining of Death Line, this is the film. Otherwise skip it.

So those were the movies I was thinking about as I travelled on the Tube earlier today. I've ridden underground transit systems in various cities, and none are exactly what I'd call pleasant. I'm no more claustrophobic than the next person, but there's something about subterranean horror I find extremely effective. Knowing that there are miles and miles of tunnels beneath our feet, and that anyone or anything could be living down there in the darkness, is deeply unsettling.

[thecolorsblend]

Finally saw Oppenheimer yesterday. Laser IMAX.

All in all, I enjoyed it. This is a strong contender for best thing Nolan has ever done. And for my money, Oppenheimer's competition for "best thing Nolan ever did" is Memento, The Prestige and The Dark Knight.

Because I never was big on Interstellar, frankly.

Anyway. Oppenheimer. Maybe I should avoid spoilers for the time being. So, I'll just say that it feels more like two movies wrapped up into one. Which is no criticism on my part.

It's not the feel-good hit of the year. But it does tell a profound story about a complicated man at one of the most pivotal moments in human history.

Highly recommended.

[thecolorsblend]

Margin Call. A peak behind the curtain of the 2008 financial meltdown. Lots of charismatic performances and something that affected all or most of us.

It's just a good movie. And best of all, you can watch it for free on YouTube.

Even better, if you have Ad Block for Chrome installed, you can watch it without ads.

[The Joker]

Quatermass and the Pit influenced Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce (1985), which IIRC also has a brief scene on the London Underground during the climactic third act.

I just picked up Tobe Hooper's "Lifeforce" 3-disc 4K/Blu set a few weeks ago. Completing my set of Hooper's Cannon films (Lifeforce, Invaders from Mars 1986, Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2), and Mathilda May in 4K is just too alluring to pass up to be perfectly honest.

Mathilda May, and Tobe Hooper's interview QnA's on the extras are interesting to listen to. Hooper lets it be known that he was not in any way, shape, or form happy with Cannon's decision to title the film, "Lifeforce", nor was he particularly pleased with the final stateside poster art. Mathilda speaks about being unfamiliar with the english language at the time of filming, and thus having to learn her lines by language shadowing. Due to this, she could not communicate with hardly anyone during the production, and felt very isolated as a consequence.

Overall, i'd recommend the 4K set. The presentation, the extras, and there's 2 commentary tracks that make it worth picking up if you're a fan of the film.