Reviews
Nailed (2006)
Idea for a short movie made into a full length one
First of all, the poster to this movie (with the nailed hand) is very misleading, if you want to see the movie because of that - as I did. You most likely will be disappointed, since there's a similar scene in the movie, but it's by no means representative for the movie; don't expect another Saw / Hostel clone.
While I liked the basic idea of the movie, the implementation was lacking in all aspects. The acting was (for this kind of B-movie) OK, some more realism in the way the cops handled their guns would have been appreciated, the effects (what little there were) were done acceptably and cutting/camera work was decent (again, you see a lot worse in the category of movies).
My main problem with the movie was that there were several scenes that a) didn't make any sense towards getting the movie going or b) seemed to be a constant iteration of things that already happened / any awake viewer already understood. If you'd cut all the gratuitous scenes you might end up with a 45 min episode for Tales from the Crypt (they do have higher production standards, tough) but you wouldn't be half as bored as watching the movie as it is.
The other major downer was that fact that there was no acceptable explanation for the things that happened (there was some kind of explanation, but it didn't make any sense whatsoever and left many points out).
In the state the movie is I can't really recommend watching it.
Haute tension (2003)
Most thrilling movie of 2004
First of all I do have a weak spot for thrilling / scary / tense movies and I tend to watch all that I can get hold of. Thus it's quite difficult to find movies that are still tense, since you know most of the 'tricks' to scare audiences or the movies are just really bad.
When I came across "High tension" / "Haute tension" it didn't get my hopes high, but alas I decided to rent it, and boy was I in for a ride. In my personal top list of 2004 this movie has the first place in the "really scary" category, with a WIDE margin to the second place.
It's just perfect in its execution, great believable actresses and actors, great visuals and acoustics as well as editing. Everything just feels right, and it IS scary.
Only the surprising ending might tick some off, but in my opinion it fits the roller-coaster ride that this movie is.
Watch this if you like scary movies.
El padrino (2004)
As cheesy as it can get
A great gangster flick, with brilliant performances by well-known actors with great action scenes? Well, not this one.
It's rather amazing to see such a wide cast of well-known actors, that have many good movies in their filmographies in such a movie, without doubt this may be one of the worst they could possibly appear in.
First of all, the plot is as you'd expect it from your average gangster biography, nothing new, nothing fancy in it. The way it is told makes the movie look a LOT longer than it is (when i thought the two hours should be almost over, i was quite surprised that only 45 minutes had passed).
The action scenes look a lot like those from 80ies TV series - the A-Team, for example. It's just that in the 80ies (esp. with the A-Team) those scenes were far more sophisticated than those in "El Padrino". It's especially fun to see the guys point their guns in the air and still hit something (not to talk about people that take cover behind car doors which later look like they've been shot through).
The acting fits quite nicely to the action. Either you get the same reaction to everything that happens (Dolph Lundgren style), or it's so overacted that you may think it's a parody (but unfortunately it's not).
My advise is to stay away from this movie, any other gangster movie is better than this one.
Der Fluch (1988)
Ahead of it's time
Long before mystery thrillers really got popular again this little gem shows what a great thrilling (or better: shocking) movie one can create. The acting is quite on point and very good, it's convincing and down to earth, the reactions to the happenings are most of the time as you'd expect them, and it's all about acting.
There are almost no special effects (at least not the kind you're used to nowadays), and no real "shock" moments, it's all about the atmosphere that is created, and it's done very well.
Highly recommended if you like mystery thrillers about old dark prophecies coming true. I've seen this movie quite a few times meanwhile and it still keeps me to the edge of my seat.