DIRECTOR: David Lynch
CAST: Laura Dern, Jeremy Irons, Justin Theroux
THE PLOT: An actresses perception of reality becomes distorted as she finds herself falling for her co-star in a remake of a cursed Polish production
BEN'S VIEWS: I have enjoyed most of the David Lynch films that I have seen and a few of his are some of my favorites (The Elephant Man, The Straight Story) But Inland Empire is just pretentious crap and I typically enjoy more artistic films. This one is three hours of pure confusion. Are we supposed to make sense of any of this? Some films are puzzles that the audience must put together and some are very good (Stay, Mullholland Drive). But this is the equivalent of a 1,000 piece puzzle that will have you tearing your hair out. Yes, there is a lot of unsettling imagery here but it adds up to nothing. The whole is definitely not greater than the sum of its parts. Do yourself a favor and save this three hours of your life for better movies.
DIRECTOR: Sam Raimi
CAST: Bruce Campbell
THE PLOT: The lone survivor of an onslaught of flesh-posessing spirits holds up in a cabin with a group of strangers while the demons continue their attack.
BEN'S VIEWS: Evil Dead II is more of the same but that is a good thing if you enjoyed the first film, as I did. There are some small differences between the first and second film. This one feels like more of a horror comedy than Evil Dead as it is more over the top and contains many deliberately comedic parts. But director Sam Raimi uses the same great camera and sound techniques to freak us out that he used before. Just know while watching the Evil Dead series is kind of like going through a haunted house: it's not meant to be taken seriously. The films goal is to make you jump out of your seat when something pops out at you, all the while laughing at the absurdity of it all. But the Evil Dead films are a good time so sit back and enjoy yourself.
DIRECTOR: David Cronenberg
THE CAST: James Woods, Deborah Harry
THE PLOT: A lowly cable TV operator begins to see his life and the future of the media spin out of control in an unusual fashion when he aquires a new kind of programming for his station.
BEN'S VIEWS: Videodrome is one of David Cronenberg's better films that I have seen. The theme of the film (the effects of the ol' boob tube on humanity) is as timely now as it was in 1983 as television continuously becomes more extreme. The film examines the blurring line between TV programs and reality in a unique manner. As the film goes on it becomes very hallucinatory and psychologically complex. Eventually it becomes a question of what is reality and what the main character is hallucinating. If you've seen Cronenberg's latest films you may wonder what the hype is about David. But if you look to some of his older work such as this unsettling and thought-provoking film you may begin to understand.
DIRECTOR: Kathryn Bigelow
THE CAST: Adrian Pasdar, Jenny Wright, Bill Paxton, Lance Henriksen
THE PLOT: A young man reluctantly joins a traveling family of evil vampires when the girl he attempts to seduce to turns out to be one of them.
BEN'S VIEWS: Near Dark is good for a few things but is ultimately inconsequential. One of the few things is the fusing of genres creating a "vampire western". It is definitely not a horror film though as it is not scary at all. Instead it looks at the life of vampire from their perspective. But it is really forgettable compared to other looks at vampirism such as Interview With the Vampire. At times the film almost escapes mediocrity but then loses focus, such as the unique love story between vampires that is poorly developed. But this is a must see for some for one reason: to see Bill "The Extreme" Paxton let loose as a sinister bloodsucking wild-child. He gives us so many unintentional laughs that it almost makes the film worthwhile.
