Sinister

Sinister
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Scott Derrickson [IMDB]

I miss Ethan Hawke, seems like you don't see him in much these days. Then, out of the blue before my screening of Prometheus, I see a trailer for Sinister, starring your boy Ethan Hawke. I must admit, I felt the trailer was extremely effective and left me wanting to check out Sinister... guess what?  I did.

Synopsis: A struggling writer and family moves into a house that was the site of a ghastly group murder. Shit goes south quickly as he starts to unravel the mystery behind the killings.

This film is worth checking out if you're into the horror genre. It infuses your standard film making with a found footage element, which I felt was a unique spin on things. This was achieved with the use of lost home movies that Hawke stumbles across, which are really successful in the arm hair raising department. The tone of the film is dark and ominous, verses gory and in your face. I also really liked the score, which I felt was creepy but also a little strange and different from your standard horror scores.

Sinister's main flaw is the believability of it. Some of the actions of the characters seem unrealistic, like moving into a murder house and not sharing that with your wife. Speaking of the wife, she's pretty bad and the character development of the family overal is pretty sparse. There's a few other cliches but nothing that ruins the film.

Beyond the Black Rainbow

Beyond the Black Rainbow
(2010) [Trailer]
Director: Panos Cosmatos [IMDB]

I watched the trailer for this title earlier in the year and thought it looked extremely interesting. After seeing some good and bad buzz about it, I noticed it popped up in Netflix on demand... so here you go.

Synopsis: A young psychic girl escapes being held captive by a crazed doctor in a secretive commune.

Beyond the Black Rainbow has its ups and downs, I'm going to address them both right now...

The ups: It's a visual heavyweight and takes notes from cinematic masters like Kubrick, Jodorowski, and David Lynch. There are a couple of really mesmerizing scenes... I don't do the drugs, but If I did I would imagine it would blow your intoxicated mind. The score sounds like something right out of a John Carpenter flick, which helps bring the tone of this movie into an eerie place. I also got delivered some great practical effects/make up work that was a pleasant surprise.

I had read a few reviews claiming this film didn't have any kind of plot... I would disagree. I think the story takes a while to roll out and it's very sparse at times. Black Rainbow tells it's tale more through pictures and sound, than through tons of dialogue. I can see that being a turn off for some, but at the end of it you get the general idea of what transpired.

The downs: The film is shot digitally and you can tell in a lot of places when it gets overly grainy. The worst thing is the ending, it was a bit of a wet noodle. I think they could have wrapped it up in a more satisfying way, I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just leave it at that.

If you're into films like Altered States, 2001, Eraserhead, Videodrome, or Suspiria... check it out... it definitely puts out that vibe.