Rebecca (1940)

"A self-conscious bride is tormented by the memory of her husband's dead first wife."

Although I'm the first to admit that I'm not much of a Hitchcock expert, this Oscar winning gothic thriller seems ideal (at least atmospherically) for my second recommendation in the run up to Hallowe'en.

There's not much I can tell you which you can't find out for yourself by Googling or reading Wikipedia, as it all seems fairly typical of an Alfred Hitchcock wartime film noir to me. "Rebecca" was Hitchcock's first American movie and his second adaptation of a book by Cornish author Daphne du Maurier.

Apparently, David Selznick wasn't happy with losing control as producer to the whims of Alfred Hitchcock and reshot several scenes, but I have no clue what they were or even if it matters that much. The movie ran way over budget for all kinds of reasons, and I don't think anyone involved was completely happy with it either during or after production.

Much like any other movie of the time, "Rebecca" is all very dated with mostly awful overacting and line delivery, and effects such as rear projection during the driving scenes are glaringly obvious. There's even what appears to be roadkill in the background of the second day out in Monte Carlo (actually California) with Maxim and the future Mrs de Winter.

"There will only be 8 planets left... after I destroy Uranus."

With several changes to the original novel by Daphne du Maurier, the standout amd most memorable character becomes the sinister housekeeper Mrs Danvers (as played by Judith Anderson) rather than the romantic leads. Danvers is quite the looker, hardly ever blinks, and has the worst kind of fangirl crush on the dead former mistress of the house. Weirdly, we never get to see the titular Rebecca de Winter in flashbacks, and have to learn nearly everything about her from the rose-tinted memories of her obsessed servant. But just like the novel, the new Mrs de Winter doesn't even get a first name.

The only big problem with "Rebecca" is that it's hard to care about any of the characters other than Laurence Olivier's cuckolded Maxim, and to some extent, George Sanders as the opportunistic adulterer Max Favell. A very young Joan Fontaine is simply far too mousey, awkward, and scared of her own shadow as she comes to terms with her new position among the upper classes to be a sympathetic character for modern audiences who have never encountered domestic service themselves. Except for period TV dramas such as "Upstairs Downsatirs" and "Downton Abbey", I'm glad to say that I've never had much to do with the antiquated British feudal system either.

What makes "Rebecca" worth watching for its two-hour duration is the set design for the interiors of Manderley, the atmosphere, and the anticipation of revelations with a twist. Getting there may not be worth the trouble for some people (including anyone who has seen or heard any of the remakes and clones), but as a precursor to "The Uninvited" (1944)—an equally dated ghost story which I've often recommended for Hallowe'en—it's certainly interesting to see how certain moral codes were only everso slightly more relaxed four years later.

Due yet another remake any time now, "Rebecca" is still worth checking out if you don't want to wait. A certain British newspaper gave away barebones DVDs of the movie several years ago (which you can now pick up for pennies on eBay), and of course, it's been uploaded all over the internet streaming sites (despite not being officially in the Public Domain as far as I know) for those who want to search for it.

As an old black and white movie, I don't know if there's any benefit in buying a blu-ray version, but I'm sure at least one exists. The existing DVDs have several grainy moments near the end which could be the result of an intentional effect shot through a piece of net (perhaps to simulate fog or smoke), but they are all good enough for most people.

Dark Tourist (2012)

"A psychological-thriller in the haunting tradition of films like Taxi Driver and Monster, The Grief Tourist takes us into the chilling labyrinth of a man's dark hobby and his even darker mind."

Not a review today but a recommendation. Apparently it's "Labor Day" or something in America, so I'm going to celebrate it by doing as little as possible. Writing a blog post is obviously such hard work!

Anyway, it may interest you to know that Suri Krishnamma's "Dark Tourist", formerly known as "The Grief Tourist" (presumably to differentiate it from Dom Joly's book about the weird hobby rather than the same subject matter), has a limited theatrical release at City Cinemas Village East Cinema, New York. Check it out if you live within range. [It's also available via VOD and iTunes for anybody else.]

As a film noir-ish hybrid of "Chained" (2012) and "Taxi Driver" (1976), "Dark Tourist" might not appeal to everyone unless they are into serial killers or stories about maniacs becoming that way, but if you're reading this blog, it's highly likely that you are the target audience. Even though I'm more into fantasy than real life murders, I think that "Dark Tourist" is a very good movie indeed. It's well written, nicely shot, and has an off-beat, gritty, character-driven feel to it like "Edmond" (2005).

Aside from Michael Cudlitz's outstanding performance which I'm sure is being raved about from one side of the internet to the other, it's also extremely nice to see Melanie Griffith in something on the big screen again. She's still much the same as before except older, wiser, and a better actress than I remember her to be. The scenes involving Jim (Michael Cuditz) and Betsy (Melanie Griffith) are great.

My only minor criticism is that "Dark Tourist" should've been longer. For that reason, the story seems to have some unnecessary additional information near the end which doesn't quite fit in. I won't spoil it for you, but suffice it to say that Suzanne Quast as Iris the prostitute is definitely all woman!

"Dark Tourist" is the kind of bleak and brutal stuff which I'm always willing to recommend. It's not going to make me take up grief tourism—"the act of travelling with the intent to visit places of tragedy or disaster"—as a hobby though. I'm already morbid enough as it is.

Have a great holiday, everybody!

I bought that for a dollar - part 9

I haven't done one of these for ages so here are two more "Double Feature" DVDs which I got for $1. In this case, these DVDs by "PC Treasures" were reduced from $1 each to 50c each so I got twice as much for my money.

From left to right, first we have "Circus of Fear" (1966) which is more of an English giallo than a horror (which isn't that surprising as it was written by Edgar Wallace) but I had to have it for Christopher Lee even though it's not exactly his greatest performance and you don't really see a lot of him in it.

Next, "The Hitch-hiker" (1953) is a very underrated film noir which, of course, is a precursor in many ways to "The Hitcher" (which we all know and love). If anything, it's a lot more tense than the Rutger Hauer vehicle and is supposedly based on a true story.

More film noir which borders on horror in "D.O.A." (1950) as a salesman gets poisoned and only has 24 hours to find out who did it and why. It's actually really good for the time although the plot has been done to death since.

Finally, "Detour" (1945) is kind of like "Very Bad Things" but without any comedy as a small time criminal falls foul of one of the most evil femme fatales ever and can't get away from her. Ann Savage is absolutely fantastic in it.

All of these public domain movies are quite highly rated on the IMDb and I almost bought a couple of Mill Creek's "mystery" packs to get them once. I'm glad that I saved my money though as these are the only titles on those packs which are any good anyway.

Angel Heart (1987)

"Harry Angel is a private investigator. He is hired by a man who calls himself Louis Cyphre to track down a singer called Johnny Favorite. But the investigation takes an unexpected and somber turn."

Many years ago, when I used to religiously collect every horror movie that "4 Front Video" released (due to the lovely golden sleeves on their VHS tapes), I got myself a copy of "Angel Heart". I remember the day like it was yesterday. It was raining, I was in Woolworths, and "Angel Heart" was on the shelves with all the other £4.99 "4 Front Deletions" (as they were also labelled) which I'd already bought. Obviously this wasn't in 1987 but in the mid-90s as I really had no interest in seeing what I'd heard was a glorified pop video at any point before then. It also didn't help matters much that I already knew what the twist was.

Once home, I put this into my old top-loading VCR and prepared for the worst. No matter how many times I tried, I just couldn't get into it, and, though not a difficult film to understand, I just couldn't follow how Mickey Rourke's character was getting from A to B or why. The truth is that I really didn't much care.

Having now watched it again just to review it, I like it considerably more. While "Angel Heart" still has a lot of flaws, and I'll never quite understand how or why Harry Angel ends up in a Harlem church again after his only lead has apparently committed suicide, it did all look a lot better than I remembered it.

The languid "film noir" pace which once simply sent me to sleep was still the same but reminded me of better films such as "Blade Runner" (1982) and "Chinatown" (1974). The score, of course, is very similar to "Blade Runner" in places but, apart from a few blues-filled excursions into pop video land, it all worked for the benefit of the film.

Where "Angel Heart" excelled was in atmosphere and the grimy, sleazy quality of the filming. Where it failed massively was in the transitions from one location to another and, to be perfectly frank, the dialogue. The acting may have been first class but the words that came out of the characters' mouths often seemed more forced than natural. Although it's no understatement to say that "Angel Heart" is not only Alan Parker's masterpiece but Mickey Rourke's as well, that still doesn't make it a great horror film.

I'm not even sure that "Angel Heart" should really be called a "horror film" though. It may contain a huge amount of voodoo, supernatural elements, and some inventive deaths (most of which you don't even see happen but either hear about or see the aftermath of instead) but it isn't actually all that horrific or scary. Having Robert De Niro give an exquisitely sinister performance as "Louis Cyphre" (yes, you can work that one out easily enough!) may be enough for some people though.

What I really liked about "Angel Heart" was the story. You can argue as much as you like about it being predictable but I think that's the point. You are supposed to be able to work out a lot of what Harry Angel doesn't just before the revelatory twist and that is what makes it all worthwhile.

I used to be firmly of the opinion that the ending meant that "Angel Heart" wasn't a film that could ever be enjoyed twice. As much as it's a forerunner of "Identity", "Shutter Island", "The Ward" and even "Skjult" (which I reviewed earlier last week), all those films contain huge plot holes which you can't tie-up no matter how many times you rewatch them. "Angel Heart" has far fewer inconsistencies within its internal logic which means that you can go back and answer any questions that spring to mind although, if you pay close enough attention in the first place, you will never have to.

Undoubtedly there were a couple of surreal moments which completely jumped the shark as far as my enjoyment of any movie goes. Anything that disrupts the flow of a narrative such as dream sequences, flashbacks, hallucinations or any other weirdness really annoys me to the point where I mentally just switch off and, more often than not, eject the DVD and never bother with it again. All the blood dripping through the ceiling during the once infamous Lisa Bonet sex scene was probably the worst of these crimes but I kept watching for obvious reasons. The little boy's eyes glowing at the end were also rather unnecessary but I suppose you have to bear in mind the time that the film was made. "Angel Heart" may be set 1955 but it's still very much a product of the 1980s.

One thing that really stood out for me was all the racial stuff. Being from Britain means that I don't really come from a culture with quite the same history (although you could argue about some of the more dubious Imperial practices) and so that aspect of "Angel Heart" has always been alien to me. On a very personal level, I only met one black person in my entire life before coming to America and he was a medical doctor. Seeing this slice of America's past, albeit fictionalised, is just weird especially as, although the laws about racial equality have changed, I have noticed that the attitudes in real life largely remain the same. I'm not going to digress too much on this subject however or I'll be writing this review for days.

Changing the subject slightly, I really didn't find Lisa Bonet all that attractive but, curiously, I did think Charlotte Rampling looked incredible and I wish that more had been done with her character. It's not that "Angel Heart" needed any more sex in it but there were a couple of erotic moments between Harry Angel and Margaret Krusemark which should have been developed further especially in light of the big secret revealed at the end. The whole thing could probably have been made far more tragic by a different director and, with a remake rumoured, I expect it will be.

Anyway, I'm putting "Angel Heart" back in The Vault not because it's a fantastic horror film but because, in spite of some "Twilight Zone" qualities, it was quite original at the time. Obviously, the "Hellraiser" sequels (particularly V, VI and VII) have redone this story to death now and contain all the goriness that "Angel Heart" itself would have benefited from and it's interesting (and probably not entirely coincidental) that the original "Hellraiser" came out in 1987 as well. Stories about pacts with demons or the devil are far older than even the story of "Faust" but, in the late 80s, well, I'll leave it to your own memories to work out exactly why they became popular again.

I recommend "Angel Heart" to three kinds of people - Mickey Rourke fans, lovers of movies about voodoo, and general film noir enthusiasts. I don't recommend it to a modern audience (who have the same attention deficit disorder as Harry Angel appears to have at times) or to anyone expecting a real chiller.