COLOR OUT OF SPACE: LOVECRAFT DONE RIGHT

In the 1990s director Richard Stanley began making a name for himself with two films that reinterpreted the horror and sci-fi genre. HARDWARE featured a killer cyborg that kept rebuilding itself to carry on its threat to those it encountered and DUST DEVIL featured a mysterious killer with supernatural tendencies. He then began work on THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU in 1996 with Marlon Brando and Val Kilmer only to be fired the day shooting began. Stanley disappeared from feature films after that incident, chronicled in the documentary “Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau”. Only now has he returned with his take on the H.P. Lovecraft tale COLOR OUT OF SPACE.

The Gardner family has moved to a country home after the mastectomy of mother Theresa (Joely Richardson). Nathan (Nicolas Cage) feels it will be a more wholesome atmosphere for his family. Daughter Lavinia (Madeline Arthur) disagrees and misses her friends. Her brother Benny (Brendan Meyer) just wants to get along. And youngest Jack (Julian Hilliard) is oblivious and enjoying himself. Each of these characters has issues and they all come to play as the movie progresses.

Their secluded existence is shattered one night when a mysterious pink/purple meteor crashes on their property near their house. Emitting a glow unlike anything they’ve ever seen, Nathan contacts the local police to check it out. When they arrive the meteor is beginning to deteriorate and seep into the water table. On hand to learn something about it is Ward, a hydrologist whose been surveying the water table in plans for a hydroelectric dam. He take samples to be tested and Benny suggest they also talk to Ezra (Tommy Chong).

Ezra is a stoner who lives in a shack on the property. When Nathan and Ward visit him he plays them a recording he’s made, talking about creatures moving underground. They pass this off and ignore him as he continues to listen.

Jack has become fascinated with the nearby well since the meteor struck. He insists he keeps hearing a man inside the well calling to him. At the same time the vegetation around the well takes on a life of its own, growing into unknown plants all with that pink/purple tint to it.

As the residue from the meteor seeps into the ground water and the family drinks from it, they also begin to change. Nathan becomes prone to violent outbursts and nonsensical rants. Theresa seems to completely zone out. Only the teens begin to see something is happening as the cell phones stop working and other strange occurrences take place. Unable to figure it all out, the viewer is left to wonder what it was that came from the meteor and if the world let alone this family can survive.

This Lovecraft story has been filmed before in different ways, first with the Karloff classic DIE MONSTER DIE. In 1987 it was turned into the film THE CURSE. Then in 2008 it was used again in an Italian version of the story. Now Stanley has returned to film his version.

The movie looks amazing, especially when you realize that the budget couldn’t have been much. That’s not a slight but a fact with the production company not creating big budget films. The same would hold true of trusting Stanley to helm a new movie after all these years. And yet both risks seem to have paid off with a movie that’s fascinating and hold your interest start to finish.

The appearance of the film is outstanding and the cinematography, production design and special effects are top of the line. The coloring decisions used are gorgeous and help add to the mystery of the film. The effects at moments reminded me of John Carpenter’s THE THING but I’d rather not go into it for fear of ruining the film for those who have yet to see it. Suffice to say the effects are handled well.

Stanley appears to have redeemed himself for the self-imposed exile he took on after MOREAU. That’s a good thing to see as my guess is he has more movies that need to be set to film. His ability as a director hasn’t shown signs of weakening and watching this film will only make fans anxious to see the next release he has planned.

On the whole the movie will entertain and hold you in its grip from start to finish. Fans of Lovecraft should be pleased with this effort. 

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FROZEN 2: SEQUEL-ITIS

Many movies have been so popular that they were followed by a second feature involving the same characters. In the distant past this didn’t happen that often but in recent years it’s become a given. Not only that the stories have changed from individual films to franchises. Some work, others don’t. Most second films have become victim to what’s called the sophomore slump, a sequel that doesn’t come close to the original. FROZEN II arrives on disc this week. Where does it fall?

We learn the story of long ago as Elsa and Anna are children in bed. Their father tells them of the day King Runeard and a group from Arendelle went to meet representatives of the Northuldra tribe. They had just built a damn that was supposed to help them and were celebrating. But the celebration turned sour as a battle broke out between the two groups. The elements and magical sprites took issue with this and entrapped the two groups in the forest, surrounded by a mist that no one could penetrate. Only two people escaped, their father and his rescuer.

Years later Elsa begins hearing a mysterious voice, calling her to the mist enshrouded forest. No one else hears it and she shares the information with no one. But it continues to call to her. She eventually follows it and awakens the elemental spirits of earth, fire, wind and water. In doing so she puts Arendelle in danger and rescues the people by rushing them to safety out of town.

To save her people and land Elsa decides she must journey to the enchanted land sung of in old nursery rhymes, one that her mother sang to her and Anna. Anna refuses to let her go alone and along with Kristoff the ice harvester, Sven his reindeer and Olaf the snowman they head for the mist covered forest.

Unsure of how to proceed since no one has entered or left this area in all these years, the move cautiously. Because of the magic that flows through Elsa, they are able to pass and enter the area swept in by the element of wind. What they discover is those who were trapped here long ago, still untrusting of one another and having no concept of the outside world any more.

There remains a mystery to be solved though. Before the elements can be harmonious once again this mystery has to be settled. The past must come up once more and the truth must be told. The only person who can make this happen, who has the power to do so, is Elsa. The journey to make it happen will be treacherous and hers alone to make.

Like the original film this movie is filled with amazing animation and plenty of music like we’ve come to expect from Disney films. The good news/bad news especially for parents is that there doesn’t seem to be a particular song like “Let It Go” from the first film for your children to latch on to and sing non-stop. Good news for that reason but bad news because the music here while good doesn’t feel as fresh. In fact at times it feels more like the composer/lyricist were attempting to create a Broadway musical instead of a film. Almost all songs end with crescendos and become overpowering.

Don’t get me wrong though. That doesn’t harm the film in any way. It’s still quite enjoyable and has more story than one would expect in a sequel. The depth of that story is wonderful as well. Adults will understand it quite well and children will get the biggest parts of it. Heroines will be placed in danger and have to rise to the occasion. Solutions to the questions posed will be answered.

Among all of this are the expected humorous moments as well. As would be expected many of those come at the expense of Olaf. But there is Kristoff as well who wants to propose to Anna but can’t seem to find not just the right words but the right moment as well.

So does the film hit the sophomore slump? Not quite but it barely rises out of that category. It’s a lot of fun for the family to enjoy. As a fan of animation I still marvel at what they can accomplish. There are numerous visual feasts to enjoy here. It might not be FROZEN but it’s still worth watching and enjoying. So pop some corn, turn out the lights and get the family together. It’s movie night! 

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ONE MISSED CALL TRILOGY: J HORROR MEETS TECH

Horror films have appeared all around the world and been influenced by the cultures in which they were founded. European culture created things like lumbering monsters, vampires and werewolves, all roaming the countryside or inhabiting castles. American horror used these as a jumping off point but then brought along the world of the occult with Lovecraft and the urban side of things with Stephen King. And Japanese horror used folklore to create some of the most horrific ghost stories ever told.

Those tales of ghosts found their way into films early on in the 1960s with films like KWAIDAN and ONIBABA. But it wasn’t until the 1990s and into the 2000s that the genre suddenly shot up and was noticed worldwide, influencing films in other countries and finding a market for those foreign films with fans who loved what they had to offer. Series like RINGU and JU-ON were heralded as a new form of horror. This was followed later by the ONE MISSED CALL trilogy, now on blu-ray from Arrow Video.

Arrow is releasing all three films together just as they did the RINGU series and for fans you couldn’t ask for more. The trilogy opens with ONE MISSED CALL directed by the legendary Takashi Miike. It tells the story of a group of friends, one of which gets a call from herself two days in the future. Listening to her voice mail she hears her own voice, talking about something taking place and then screaming. Two days later at the time the call was sent, she dies, thrown onto a set of railway tracks and dismembered, her hand clutching her phone and seemingly dialing on her own. The calls being sent predict the deaths of their receivers and are forwarded to someone in their contacts. Members of the group of friends begin searching for the cause of the calls and trace it back to an abused child who left behind a curse before dying. Can the curse be ended?

The second film in the series, for me the most frightening, is ONE MISSED CALL 2. It picks up with ties to the first film, most notably the detective investigating the deaths from the initial film. Another group of friends begins receiving calls predicting their demise. This time around an investigative reporter is helping the group, drawn into the search with feelings of guilt involving her own past. The same ghosts from the first film is once more responsible and discovering who that is gives the film a twist as well as transporting the cause from Japan to Taiwan.

Lastly is ONE MISSED CALL: FINAL, which takes us to a whole new group of victims with zero ties to the original two films. Instead a group of teens on a school trip to South Korea are being killed one by one by the same mysterious phone calls offering the same time of death predictions. But these calls are coming from a classmate they tormented until she attempted suicide. Or is she the one responsible? Could the ghost of films one and two have something to do with this story as well?

When released the films were dogged by critics who felt they relied too heavily on the films of the past. The same pale blue long haired figure was used to portray the ghost and the fact it used a ghost to begin with made them rule these films out as little more than jumping on the bandwagon. But watching them now I found them as interesting as those previous films and no more copying them than say THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE copies THE UNINVITED or THE HAUNTING. All involve ghosts and hauntings but give their own take on things.

Each film has its own vibe and style and while many might view the Miike film as superior I found the second film much more effective. The scares were placed well and had more of a creep factor than the first film. There are moments that provide enough shudders and nightmare inducing moments that it stuck with me more than the other two.

Arrow Video has done yet another amazing job with this release. Would you expect anything less? The films look magnificent in 1080p hi definition. The picture quality is amazing. And the extras are lengthy and worth watching as much as the films themselves. They include a new audio commentary on the first film by Miike biographer Tom Mes, THE MAKING OF ONE MISSED CALL an archival documentary on the film, archival interviews with actors Ko Shibasaki, Shinichi Tsutsumi and Kazue Fukiishi and director Miike, an archival interview with Miike, archival footage of the first film’s premiere, LIVE OR DIE TV special, A DAY WITH THE MIZUNUMA FAMILY the main characters of the ghost, an alternate ending for the first film, THE MAKING OF ONE MISSED CALL 2 an archival documentary on the filming, GOMU a shirt film by director Renpei Tsukamoto who directed the second film, ONE MISSED CALL 2 deleted scenes, ONE MISSED CALL 2 music video, THE MAKING OF ONE MISSED CALL: FINAL an archival documentary on the filming, MAKI AND MEISA an archival behind the scenes featurette on the last film and two of its stars, BEHIND THE SCENES WITH KEUN-SUK JANG an archival featurette with the last film’s South Korean star, THE LOVE STORY a short film tie-in to the last film, CANDID MIMIKO an archival location tour with the series iconic villain, theatrical trailers and TV spots and a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matt Griffin.

I would be lying to say that I tire of heaping praise on Arrow Video. The truth is they deserve the praise they receive for releasing films like this in pristine fashion with the amount of extras they heap on as well. Fans of horror and J horror in particular should make a point of adding this to their collections. And if you’ve never experienced the films then by all means, give this one a watch. 

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