Memory keeper. Mostly music and movies, plus some series and video games. Obscure darkness meets pop culture glow.
After Weapons, this was a must-see, as soon as possible. And this was just OMG all over again. This is even weirder than Weapons: so strange, so much it’s own thing, hard to convey, but as someone who likes horror that’s more weird than gore or scary, I’m here for this. There’s a kinship with Heretic, but this is better.
This was a fantastic movie. Such atmosphere, acting, characters, also music (there’s a track on the OST called The Flight—during the movie it was goosebumps, afterwards it’s a relive). And the biggest of all: such a balancing act of horror, thriller, and some weird dark comedy, that it could so easily fall apart—and it doesn’t. It’s a masterclass in directing. Also, the villain is just… chef’s kiss.
This made me instantly look up more about Zach Cregger and jump on to watch Barbarian literally the next day.
As for the cast, two notes. First, I haven’t really seen anything with Julia Garner, but I hope to see more, she has a captivating presence. Second, I have a newfound love for Benedict Wong: despite the shit that the 3 Body Problem was, his character and acting was easily the most interesting in that one, and he just kills it in this movie as well; I’m actively seeking out movies with him now. Okay, third, Amy Madigan’s Gladys is just pure genius, it’s a phenomenal character design, I was in awe.
I’ve been planning to watch this for a long-long time, finally did, and it was exactly everything I expected and wanted it to be. Beautiful and atmospheric sci-fi chamber drama with a very specific and narrow focus, which it executed and delivered brilliantly. Acting, music, direction, cinematography were all spot-on.
I read the book last year and I know exactly how much of that is in here and what the movie misses, and I have no problem with that. I don’t think this movie misses the science part of the fiction for the sake of delivering a space love drama. I think all the science aspect is in there but portrayed differently, focusing on the protagonist’s journey. The same is in the book too, but with a different focus, so this part is not spelled out that much. I loved both takes on the story: the book is great and fascinating, and the movie is captivating and beautiful.
It was a wonderful experience. Probably one of the most artful horror films that I have ever seen, and I’m much relieved to say that none of the art in it felt artsy but rather proper art film cinema. I loved how the tension kept pulsating: it went awry for short bursts, then got back to its track of narrative although with a growing feel of unease, which built up beautifully for the final catharsis. All of its visual style, camera movement, editing techniques, acting performances were just fit, and by that I mean there was nothing drawing more attention than needed, and so it was a perfectly balanced piece.