The Unrepentant Cinephile

by Jason Coffman

  And if the film’s human villain is a blank slate, its ghosts are depressingly insubstantial. There are a few showcase ghosts that are given a little personality, but most of them are just particle-based CG cartoons. Ghostbusters is a textbook example of the vast difference between practical effects and pure CG. Even in IMAX 3D, the ghosts lack any hint of a convincing physical presence. The choice to go with all CG ghosts is probably the other biggest issue fans have had with the new film, and it’s a valid criticism. But it’s also clearly a symptom of the current state of American major studio filmmaking, and that’s where things get really thorny. The original Ghostbusters has become a Sacred Text over the last decade or so, popping up in repertory screenings seemingly everywhere and drawing huge crowds of people who grew up watching it on cable or home video. Fans become attached to properties like this and feel a kind of ownership of it. That sentimental attachment is completely divorced from the fact that Ghostbusters was a Hollywood movie–in short, a product. A product made with care and artfully executed perhaps, but ultimately still a product from which the studio expected to make money.

  In that respect, the new Ghostbusters is exactly like the original. Fans will bemoan and argue over remakes endlessly, but the simple fact is that the major studios are in the movie business. If there’s a potential for profit from a remake, that remake is going to happen, and the bigger the hit the more likely a remake becomes. Ghostbusters has proven to be a huge moneymaker, not only in its original theatrical run and home video releases, but in all those sold-out screenings over the last several years. The same audience that has made the film an untouchable classic was directly responsible for the fact that it would be remade by signaling to the studio they were out there and still excited about it. People don’t like to think about the fact that money is the principal reason many films are made, especially ones to which they have such a personal attachment. Worse, the people in charge of making (or remaking) films largely have no such emotional stake in the work at hand. They’re business people, and film is how they make money. Their choices are dictated not by some artistic objective or obligation to preserve the integrity of an original work, but by what will maximize their profits.

  So it’s disappointing but not entirely surprising that Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters feels so inconsequential. It’s a big-budget remake of a huge hit from three decades ago, and it’s exactly what that sounds like. It’s not great, and it’s not terrible. Some of the bits land; many of them don’t. Like Feig’s previous films, characters who barely have any screen time have a lot of the best lines. Only this time, they also provide the film with some much-needed personality that is inexplicably missing otherwise. Maybe the best thing that can be said about the film is that it’s better than the majority of Hollywood’s Summer blockbusters, which is the very definition of damning with faint praise. After all the uproar, Ghostbusters itself has proven only that all the hue and cry leading up to its release was considerably more interesting than what actually hits screens this weekend.

  The Ghostmaker (2012)

  Originally published on Film Monthly 16 November 2012

  Lionsgate’s horror slate hasn’t been all that impressive lately, and unfortunately this trend continues with The Ghostmaker. Originally titled Box of Shadows, the film was picked up by Lionsgate for distribution directly to DVD, and it does feature an intriguing concept. This automatically puts it on a higher level than previous releases from this year like Knock Knock 2. But what good is a great concept if nothing is done with it?

  Kyle (Aaron Dean Eisenberg) is a part-time student and crack addict who spends most of his time hiding his drug problem from his girlfriend Julie (Liz Fenning) and not paying his half of the rent or bills, sticking his paraplegic roommate Sutton (J. Walter Holland) with paying for everything. One day Kyle goes to work cleaning up an old lady’s basement and discovers a coffin hidden under a pile of junk. The lady asks Kyle to ensure the coffin is destroyed, so naturally he takes it home and immediately puts it up for sale online. While inspecting the coffin, Kyle discovers an elaborate clockwork built into the frame, and goes to his nerdy friend Platt (Jared Grey) to help figure out what exactly the coffin is. Turns out the clockwork is a music box and a mechanism that allows its user to experience what it’s like to be a ghost: the body is held in a suspended state and the consciousness is free to roam for as long as the clockwork plays its song.

  After a quick trial run, each friend has much different reactions to the possibilities of the device: Kyle realizes he can use it to knock off the local convenience store and make some quick money to pay back his crack dealer, Sutton believes he can use the machine to retrain his body to use his legs again (and spend time with Kyle’s girlfriend Julie, with whom Sutton is obsessed), and Platt decides to never get in it again. Soon after their time in the box, though, each of the friends discovers an unpleasant side effect of the box. They can now see the personification of Death, a floating skeletal figure with clockwork in its skull that seems to be stalking them. Ignoring that little problem, Kyle and Sutton are soon battling with each other over Julie and the box as Death hovers ever closer.

  The concept of the ancient clockwork machine invented by a sort of evil Da Vinci figure is interesting, but not much is really done with it. Kyle, a spectacularly unsympathetic protagonist, is too dim to think of anything more adventurous than robbing a convenience store and figuring out where his dealer hides his stash. Sutton’s story should be more interesting and dramatic, but instead he becomes a creepy stalker following Julie around. There’s a fine line between flawed heroes and just flat-out unlikeable bastards, and both of these characters cross it pretty early in the film. The special effects are fairly simple but effective, and the performances are good, but with such uninspiring characters there’s not much to hold the audience’s attention. In a crowded direct-to-disc horror market, The Ghostmaker has a solid central concept and is technically well made, but that’s not quite enough to recommend it without some serious reservations.

  The Giant Spider (2013)

  Originally published on Film Monthly 10 June 2013

  “Giant mutated animal” movies have made something of a comeback over the last few years thanks to the efforts of the SyFy Channel and their production cohorts, Roger Corman and The Asylum. As goofy fun as some of those films have been, though, it’s rare that any of them actually recall their ancient ancestors in 1950s science fiction in any meaningful way. Christopher Mihm, the prolific filmmaker who specializes in 50s sci-fi/horror tributes, returns with his entry into the “giant bug” subset of “giant mutated animal” movies, The Giant Spider. Shot, as always, in period appropriate black & white, Mihm aims to re-create the charms of pre-Corman low-budget sci-fi flicks (that is, pre-1950s/60s Corman, not pre-Camel Spiders Corman) and officially induct the big bug into his ever-growing “Mihmiverse.”

  While out playing in the forest with his dog, Danny Johnson (Elliott Mihm) narrowly misses becoming a light snack for a gigantic spider crawling out of the dangerous caves nearby. Meanwhile, local reporter Howard Johnson (Daniel Sjerven) attempts to propose to his girlfriend Zita Marczak (Shannon McDonough) at the malt shop where they had their first date. Unfortunately for Howard, a team of scientists sends his sidekick Joe (Ware Carlton-Ford) to drag him away with the promise of a huge story. And huge it certainly is: mutated by atomic energy, the spider is massive and hungry, headed straight for the nearest town for a human smorgasbord with the drive-in and a barn dance in its path acting as convenient appetizers.

  Howard and Joe head to the drive-in and the barn dance to warn everyone in the spider’s path, while General Castle (Mark Haider) preps the military option and Drs. Edwards, Gabriel, and Hackett (Michael Cooke, James Norgard, and Billie Jo Konze) try to figure out how to stop the creature without an atomic bomb. As Howard and Joe race to the drive-in, Zita and her students are just putting the finishing touches on the barn for the evening’s festivities and the spider is stomping its way across the county i
nteracting with the locals. Will General Castle’s military might defeat the giant spider? Will the scientists find a way to save the town? Or will the giant spider take over the world one small town at a time?

  The Giant Spider is Christopher Mihm’s eighth film in as many years, and like 2012′s House of Ghosts it continues to build on the “Phantom Lake”/Mihmiverse mythology established in his earlier films. Think of it as something like Faulkner’s Yoknapatawpha County, only with monsters, aliens, and ghosts. Familiarity with those films is rewarded with each new movie, although like House of Ghosts there are perhaps a few too many in-jokes for the Mihmiverse fan that newcomers will find puzzling. Despite this, The Giant Spider remains a very entertaining ride and is one of Mihm’s best films, with some surprisingly great special effects, Mihm’s great ensemble players, and a brief run time used to maximum advantage. Highly recommended for fans of classic sci-fi/horror– if you’re not already on the Mihmiverse train, this is a great place to hop on.

  Gigante (2009)

  Originally published on Film Monthly 9 March 2010

  Not all that long ago– hell, probably even now for some people– the phrase “foreign film” was associated with dour, miserable, impeccably shot dramas that only played in weird “art” theaters. Fortunately, with the accessibility offered by online video stores such as Netflix, Facets, and Greencine, it’s now much easier to see films from any country in the world than it was when the only option was the tiny “Foreign” section at Blockbuster. Now those people who would never have given a “foreign film” a chance can find the gems among the pretentious dross.

  One such gem is Gigante, a film from Uruguay. I’ll plead guilty to knowing absolutely nothing about Uruguayan cinema, but that background certainly isn’t necessary to enjoy this low-key charmer.

  Jara (Horacio Camandule) works the overnight shift manning the security cameras at a grocery store. Most of the time his job involves watching the cleaning crew mopping the floors, picking up displays they knock over, and sneaking small food items out with them at the end of the night. His job becomes more interesting when new cleaner Julia (Leonor Svarcas) starts. Jara finds himself drawn to Julia, first watching her intently on the security cameras and then following her around.

  Considering the subject matter, Gigante could easily have become very dark and uncomfortable, but writer/director Adrián Biniez keeps the mood light. Jara’s a big, imposing guy, but he’s clearly not dangerous. He’s obsessed with heavy metal music and likes action movies, but what he’s really looking for is simple companionship. Julia is a mystery throughout the film, appearing almost exclusively in long shots until much later in the film, but Jara’s slow discovery of information about her is a big part of the film’s charm.

  Gigante is a unique, endearing film that deserves a look. It’s funny, sweet, and just might serve as a good introduction to Uruguayan cinema. What more could you ask for?

  A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)

  Originally published on Film Monthly 24 April 2015

  It’s really tough to make a movie stand out today with so many films available to the average viewer. Streaming services like Netflix and Hulu offer up a massive array of options, and VOD services like Amazon Prime and iTunes allow viewers to catch movies at home on or near their theatrical release dates. It takes something really unusual to stand out in such a massively crowded market. As far as sales pitches go, “the first Iranian vampire western” is a killer. Combined with the film’s excellent trailer, it was no surprise that A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night was a huge hit on the film festival circuit and gathered a massive amount of hype leading up to its theatrical release. Fortunately, the film lives up to its reputation, but not quite in the way one would probably expect.

  Arash (Arash Marandi) is a young man living in Bad City, a desolate urban nightmare place bordered by oil fields and deserts (and featuring a communal mass grave piled with bodies). He lives with his father Hossein (Marshall Manesh), a sad old heroin addict, and their unnamed cat. Arash works doing landscaping for the rich parents of Shaydah (Rome Shandaloo) and trying to pay off his father’s debts to drug-dealing pimp Saeed (Dominic Rains). During these characters’ nighttime wanderings, The Girl (Sheila Vand) follows and observes them. She is not an insomniac, however: she’s a vampire, and she seems to be gauging the character of the different people she meets to choose her victims. These include not just Arash, Hossein, and Saeed, but a little boy (Milad Eghbali) and Atti (Mozhan Marnò), one of Saeed’s prostitutes. When the girl and Arash meet, they find themselves drawn to one another, although each has their own reasons for being wary of entering into a relationship.

  There is not much of a story in A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. Writer/director Ana Lily Amirpour is content to create this strange place and set the characters on their own paths that crisscross one another, these interactions creating all the tension and action in the film. This is hardly a typical approach to a horror genre film, but it is immediately apparent that Amirpour is not interested in making a typical horror movie. The film is shot in gorgeous, sharp black and white digital video and set to an occasionally Spaghetti Western-inflected score. The look of the film calls up echoes of expressionist cinema from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari to Eraserhead, its characters occasionally looking very much like actors in silent films. This may suggest the film is a lot more straight-faced than it actually is, but there are some sly moments of humor throughout. In fact, the black and white cinematography and the loose character-focused, almost episodic structure of the film somewhat recalls Jim Jarmusch’s Coffee and Cigarettes.

  That’s a pretty imposing list of references, but Amirpour blends them seamlessly together into something that feels both completely unique and oddly familiar. Sheila Vand’s vampire Girl is a fascinating character, both in her visual design (the image of the Girl riding a skateboard, her black body-length hijab billowing around her in the wind is instantly iconic) and the way her approach to choosing victims resonates with the circumstances and behavior of the characters that surround her. The characterization of the handful of people we meet in the film is carefully shaded with minimal details. Arash is ostensibly the film’s hero, but when an opportunity arises for him to make more money selling drugs than trimming hedges, he seizes it. Similarly, although his father Hossein is a tragic character, he is also capable of monstrous behavior. No one in Bad City, except maybe the little boy, is either a “hero” or a “villain”; they are all struggling to do whatever they must do to survive. The subtle but well-drawn characters, along with the stunning black and white photography and the excellent soundtrack combine to make A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night one of the best, most unique genre films in recent memory.

  The Girlfriend Experience (2009)

  Originally published on Film Monthly 30 May 2009

  The first image in The Girlfriend Experience sets the audience up for what follows: it is what appears to be a cold, polished metal wall gleaming under flourescent lights. It looks cold and impenetrable, and it seems like an appropriate metaphor for the film’s lead character. Chelsea (Sasha Grey) is an escort. Her line of work requires her to put up a wall between herself and her clients, even as she insinuates herself into their lives and gives them the illusion of having a relationship with her. We spend a lot of time with Chelsea alone and with her clients during the course of the film, but for the most part it feels like we’re trying unsuccessfully to peek over that wall, only getting glimpses of what’s on the other side.

  Chelsea lives with her boyfriend, a personal trainer named Chris (Chris Santos). Both of them are looking to get ahead in their respective businesses. Chelsea is looking to expand her client base, but doesn’t want to do that at the expense of her anonymity. Chris is looking into working at other gyms. Unfortunately, they’re doing this at a particular time in history that will be uncomfortably familiar to the viewer: October 2008. Chelsea’s clients complain and fret about the collapsing economy, while one of Chris’s regular
trainees decides to deal with the problem by going on a trip to Vegas and taking Chris along with him. These are people adept at avoiding difficulties, and they’re about to find themselves in the middle of difficult times.

  Director Steven Soderbergh presents a time in Chelsea’s life leading to what could be a pivotal decision, but cuts it up and shows events out of order, and even repeats a few for good measure. The DV cinematography gives the film an intimate feel, and in a way it feels like an upper-class New York companion piece to Soderbergh’s 2005 film Bubble, which gave audiences a similarly personal glimpse into the lives of people living in a small Midwestern town. Its structure and documentary atmosphere also makes it feel like an update of sorts to Godard’s Vivre Sa Vie, another character study about a young woman involved in prostitution with a similarly microscopic attention to detail.

  Keen viewers will see that metal wall reappear during the course of the film, and realize that it was not what it seemed to be at all. Similarly, the distance that Chelsea puts between herself and her clients may not be as impenetrable as she thinks– when she meets a screenwriter client for the first time, they establish a real connection and Chelsea is left to decide whether it’s worth taking the chance on something real at the risk of losing her carefully-arranged and comfortable life. While this may appear to be a familiar story, Soderbergh’s shattered-glass chronology and Grey’s strong lead performance take the film to interesting places.

  The Girlfriend Experience is an intriguing and unique peek into the lives of characters in an unfamiliar world (to most audiences) and in an uncertain time in their lives. I’m curious as to how the film will look ten years from now, though– as a period piece it’s about a time that’s too uncomfortably close.