oh I agree completely grom , i didn't say I didnt enjoy it, I enjoyed Matrix Revolutions even though i panned it, i just don't think 28 days lived up to anywhere near the hype it got, it just reeked of cheap and not much effort.

Mann's a visual genius, the Keep and Manhunter are paradigms of cinematography for me. bejasus does that guy know how to use light and slo-mo! Also a stroke of genius to get Tangerine Dream to do the score for the Keep.

Great film, spoilt by terrible special effects, fonk casting (Alberta Watson & Scott Glenn? -pls) and poor adaptation of the essential aspects of the book by F. Paul Wilson. Great idea though! a bunch of German soldiers take over a castle in Transylvania and start getting killed one by one, and have to turn to the SS for help in killing what they think is a vampire! so what do the SS do? shoot the villagers, that'll stop the vampire! pity they never worked the thing about the bodies into the film.

still it's one of my tops. Very similar in many ways including execution to Dust Devil by Richard Stanley, anyone seen that and care to comment?

I'm with you on the Matrix revolutions too....I panned it, but at the same time I loved every second of it. I could list a hundred hangover movies that are all big budget and crap scripts but I still love to watch when my brain's refusing to work.

Manhunter is one of my favourite photographic movies of all time. When I think of it I picture huge panoramics of the beach, slo mo window crashes and moody music. He knows how to set a scene thats for sure. I was visually impressed with Heat too....but there was also a great deal about that film that annoyed me - the majority of which rotated around the casting of Val Kilmer because he was "cool" at the time.

I'm yet to see the keep, but now you've mentioned it I may have to go on a hunt around my local bargain basement second hand video store

As for Dust Devil....now there's a movie. Again, the cinematography was outstanding, and I remember feeling very uncomfortable throughout which I see as a good thing. Movies are supposed to stir emotions, so if I remember a film by the emotion it gave me at the time then I see it as acheiving something.

I don't remember much about the plot....apart from it was set on a long desert road and was about violent killings that could be associated with a local superstition. I forget the ending, but I do remember very clearly the dust red panoramics and the "dust devil"'s dirty coat and hat being silouhetted (sp?) against the deep red evening sun. A film that I may have to dig out again sometime I think. Its one of those films that I watched once and said to myself "that was great, but I don't want to see it again"....but its been about 10 years so I think I may have to resurrect it

I'll lend you the Keep and Dust Devil if you want, both on PAL-VHS, gotta have em back though. Dust Devil is incredibly rare though. it is disturbing but looks amazing and it's very hypnotic. Suffers from aagin an unfocused script and weak dialogue, apart from Joe's chilling explanations of what the Demon is actually up to and what he is.
"he takes the souls of those who have no hope.. to build his power in the spirit world.." brrrrrrr!

you might also be interested in Alex Cox's film, Walker, which is also transfixing. Fanatstic Peckinpah-esque slo-mo gun battles to the background of burning towns and execution of civilians, often no sound other than a plaintive solo piano repaet on th sharps and flats. Some very silly characters and the politics is rammed down your throat which is annoying, and there's stupid things like cadillacs and helicopters in the 1850s, but otherwise a very intriguing if flawed offering. Ed Harris' best performance I reckon as the insane and ambivalent William Walker, American adventurer, writer, self-appointed Colonel and one-time President of Nicaragua and Man of Destiny (ie loon)

An interesting film for history buffs to watch too, although be prepared for total weirdness. tbis is by the guy who did Repo Man and Sid & Nancy, and got chucked off Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas for being too weird.

Edited by - Tawakalna on 1/9/2004 5:32:33 AM

I think I've got a copy of dust devil somewhere from when it was on channel 4 about 8 years ago! I'll have a look for the keep at my local bargain bucket second hand vid store, he's yet to let me down on the weird and wonderful. Thanks for the offer though

the ending of Dust Devil was Wendy blowing the Demon's head off with Zakes Mokae's shotgun, but she forgot to use the weed to cast his spirit off, so he just went into her. She leaves Bethany (just about the creepiest place I've ever seen on film) walsk out to the desert road, past mark her husband who's handcuffed to the Land Rover bumper, looks at him but doesn't kill him (he's still loves her you see, he's got something to live for - it only takes those who have no hope) She walks to the middle of the road and puts her head on the white line to listen for rtraffic. Off in the distance are S.African Army APCs and armoured cars leaving Namibia which has just become independent with Joe again narrating what the Demon is doing as a reprise. 'kin brilliant.

jeezaz now I remember. Man thats a corker. I know what I'm doing this weekend now! I've been meaning to sift through the 3/400 or so videos I've got anyway...they've all been sat in boxes since we moved last september and my missus is getting a bit arsey about them now. So it seems like a perfect excuse to me! I may get around to selling the buggers at some point....

If we're going into zombie movies here, has anyone else seen Braindead (1992) by Peter Jackson (yes, that's right, the LotR man himself)? Its a ridiculously over-gory black-comedy from when Jackson had micro budgets to work with. It's probably quite difficult to get hold of now though.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103873/usercomments

Is that the one with the kung-fu priest?? I loved that scene and I still giggle whenever I remember it...

best Zombie films ever - Army of Darkness and the original Day of the Dead (are the infected in 28Days really Zombies, cos they aren't actually dead are they?) followed by Night of the Comet (cos its really funny)

i haven't seen Braindead

I've seen Braindead, renamed as Dead Alive. In fact, I own it. But never ever, ever, ever, never watch the film when eating the noodley Chinese food, although that would probably go for Spagetti or other similar Italian dishes as well.

"I kick ass for the lord!"

Sir S

Day of the Dead was superb...and the 1982 computer game version was pretty good too

I haven't seen Braindead, but I've seen Bad Taste a couple of times, which is a truly dire movie....

I've seen Night of the Living Dead - I thought is a great horror flick!!

btw grom weren't you going to list me your vids so we could do a trade?

talking of zombies:
trailer you muppets this film looks bloody awesom.


"Something wicked this way comes"