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Reviews
The Demons Among Us (2006)
Thought I would be supporting Melbourne film-making...
I thought that by spending 30 dollars on a locally made film, I would be supporting the Australian Film Industry - but if films from Melbourne are all like this - I'll never buy another. In fact, I don't think I will ever buy a locally made film... such a shame. This film has shaken all my faith in Melbourne. Shaken my faith in film in general. My eyes weep. My heart bleeds. It hurt so bad.
It's as if the director started with the intention of going through every single film filter in history. I think this film would have been not bad if not for the ludicrous pretentious use of stock AVID and Premier filters littered, with no real reason, throughout the film. The writing isn't horrible, the make up is quite good (as far as B grade horror goes) and the story is interesting enough - but beside all that Hard work, the director literally pulled down his pants and defecated all over the canvas with the filters, colors, bad computer generated effects, bad day for night shoots and editing, annoying monochrome -for-no-reason, etc etc etc. It's like watching somebody back when VHS video camcorders were released playing around with all the transition settings. I'm a fan of all film for the main part - from B grade and Z grade 60's and 70's exploitation horror all the way to Oscar fodder, and there was nothing in this that I can say I enjoyed. Nothing. It is a great film to watch if you want to see what not to do if you're a filmmaker, but only if somebody pays you to take a copy of the film.
I feel very sorry for the actors, who after 3 years of production, had to sit through this film at the premier and see there performances mangled under a pile of bad transitions, annoying over the top filters etc. It is such a shame.
And the fact that this won an award locally just goes to show how bad our industry is. I would usually never go out of the way to derail a film, but whoever wrote the last review was an inside man, and that's just cheating.
Watch if you enjoy: Gouging out your eyes. -0/10
Lady in the Water (2006)
The film is a beautiful modern free-form fairy tale.
I think the reaction this film had worldwide is very ironic. The film is a beautiful modern free-form fairytale with all Campbell-esk avatars and a well-executed heroes journey. The problem eventually came down to one thing, the role that the filmmaker gave himself.
Light Spoiler warning: M. Night plays a writer who's work changes the world, and if anybody but the director of this film played the role, no one would have cared, and the film would have had a great reaction. Do we scoff when Bruce Willis saves the world over and over? Do we think he has delusions of grandeur? He surely picks the scripts and roles he plays! But if a director chooses a role he thinks would be interesting to play (and let's face it he has always like to jump in front of the camera, look at his first feature) then the whole world pans the film because of it (and he wasn't even the lead).
So a critic dies in the film, big deal it was supposed to be ironic. He was playing into specific motifs that were adapted for modern times. Once everyone gets past that, what they will get is a very well made, both cinematically and well-written modern fairytale with a central core of love, faith, hope, and unity. It is a very sweet film, and all the characters are very well developed and unique, which is refreshing after seeing the Happening (which I thought, was a flat, messy film with a good moral.). I personally found it very fun to watch. The casting was strange (and I DON'T mean M.Night being the writer) and there was some funny moments, same dark moments. It's an adult fairytale, no less it's predictable, but all fairy tales are. People have to stop taking things so seriously and just enjoy a good story.
Some people commented on the lack of bringing the audience into the world, making it believable. When will anyone believe that a water nymph comes from another world to inspire a writer? I quite liked how it doesn't try to be over-fantasy in its execution, and keeps things on a real level. If this became Stardust or Harry Potter mid way through it would have fell flat. By keeping it real it makes it much more believable then people gave it credit for. The film only asks one thing of you, to allow yourself to go on a ride and not question every little thing. If the fact that M. Night plays a character in the film annoys you, then you're missing the point of films altogether.
Besides, he's an OK actor