Movie Review: THE WARD

THE WARD

2011
R


"If I were you, I'd watch out, new girl."
-- Sarah

The Ward is a 2011 horror film directed by John Carpenter that serves as his first directorial effort in nearly a decade. The story follows a young girl named Kristen (Amber Heard) who is placed in a psychiatric hospital after burning down a farmhouse; however, she has no recollection of any events prior to her arrival at the hospital. As she tries to settle into her new environment, she meets the other girls in her ward: Iris (Lyndsy Fonseca), Sarah (Danielle Panabaker), Emily (Mamie Gummer) and Zoey (Laura-Leigh). She also meets Dr. Stringer (Jared Harris), who the girls say is trying an experimental method of therapy in their treatment. Although everything seems normal in the hospital, things start to go awry when Kristen starts to see an apparition haunting the halls. Fearful for her life and for the lives of the other girls, she attempts to break away from the ward.

While I'm not terribly well-versed on Carpenters directorial resumé, I have seen a handful of his films, and I have to say that he's been a tad hit-and-miss for me. I loved Halloween (1978), but I hated Assault on Precinct 13 (1976). I raved about 1982's The Thing, but I merely liked 1988's They Live. Because he's been so back-and-forth for me personally, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from The Ward. I thought it had the potential to be a great return to the horror genre for him, but sadly, the film just didn't really deliver.

I could probably break down the screenplay quite a bit and give you reasons as to why it isn't that good, but it would be too harsh to trash it all completely. There's a good story hidden somewhere inside this film, and were it not so painfully dull, I might have been captivated by the plot's twists and turns. To be honest, it all just felt a tad too predictable. I saw Carpenter's every move from a mile away, and I just thought he fell into horror convention a bit too much. For a man who broke ground in the horror genre so many years ago, it's sad to see him fall into conformity this way.

It's a shame he doesn't really get much help from his cast, either. While it's not the worst bit of acting you'll see, there's not really much good to say about our actors here. Amber Heard plays her character a tad bit over-the-top, and she turns into a whiny, broken record pretty quickly. We do get some okay performances from the likes of Harris and the other girls, but seeing as Heard is the star of the show, we have to suffer through her piece for the film's entirety. She may not bring down the film on her own, but she could have done a lot more to lift it from its current state.

Despite everything I've just said, the real issue with The Ward is that it just isn't scary. Whereas Carpenter has made a career on leaving his audiences in suspense, he instead chose the foray of cheap thrills for this particular film. Those of you who have been reading me for a while will know that I don't consider "cheap thrills" to be true horror. Sure, you might jump out of your seat, but you're not going to remember the scares a day or two later. Suspense will keep you awake at night, but cheap thrills will pass. Because of this, I just couldn't find the film all that terrifying, and considering the "jump" moments couldn't even cause a stir, I'd have to say that this was a rather failed experiment in the horror genre.

At the end of the day, The Ward is an interesting effort from a horror icon, but sadly, it fails on nearly every level. It breaks the first rule of the horror genre by not being scary in the slightest, and the rest of the issues with the film fall into place after that. It's not the worst film I've ever seen, but I can't in my right mind begin to recommend you watch it.

Movie Review Summary
Grade: D-
1.5 Thumbs Down

DVD Challenge #26: HALLOWEEN

Halloween
1978
R
Run-time: 1 hour, 31 minutes

Directed by: John Carpenter
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasance, Nancy Kyes



I don't remember the first time I ever saw Halloween, but I do remember the fright that the image of Michael Myers has always brought me. Those of you who've been reading me recently will know that I consider Myers to be one of the scarier horror villains to grace the silver screen, and that the film itself is near the top of the list of films that have traumatized me during my lifetime. So, it was quite the decision to try to take the film in again, considering how much it has scared me in the past. And so, to celebrate Halloween, I re-watched the iconic movie whose namesake stemmed from the scariest holiday of the year.

The film is actually pretty simple when you think about it. It starts with a young Michael Myers viciously murdering his older sister then fast-forwards fifteen years to then-present day 1978. Myers finds a way to break out of his mental institution and make his way back to his hometown, where he starts to stalk babysitters on a fateful Halloween night. That's the exact premise that John Carpenter and fellow screenwriter Debra Hill started with, and they ran with it from there. I watched one of the interviews on my copy of the film, and Hill talked about how they listed out a number of potential scares for the movie then worked the screenplay around each of the scares. It's not as though the storyline is going to blow you away, but the thrills and chills should do the trick.

Most of the fear in the film comes from the suspense that the atmosphere creates, but a big chunk of that fear also comes from our villain himself. Referred to on-set as the Shape, most people know him as Michael Myers, a man who is purely evil and wears a modified William Shatner mask to keep his face hidden for most of the film. There's something inherently creepy about the mask itself, but the reason that Michael scares me so much is the fact that he's completely silent for the film's entirety. Never once does he speak (even in the prologue where we see him as a child), and the most we ever hear in terms of a sound from him is his breathing behind the mask. The white, expressionless mask, combined with his complete silence, makes Michael Myers one of the scarier villains I've seen grace the silver screen. I've had many a night where I thought I saw him standing outside my own window. He's that ingrained into my subconscious.

The rest of the cast does it's job relatively well, but it's not like we're getting A-grade acting here. The film was shot on a budget of $300,000, so there really wasn't much in terms of quality acting to be bought. However, we do get a decent (if drawn-out) performance from Pleasance, and it's a nice introduction to Curtis, who would go on to be known as the "scream queen" after this role.

While the scares aren't necessarily as terrifying as I remember them, you can't take away from the overall creepiness of the film, which is greatly accentuated by the musical score that Carpenter created. The score landed as the second best horror film score on the list I posted a few days ago, but it's simplicity is where it gets you. While not quite on the level of the Jaws score, which almost becomes a character itself, the score for Halloween is utterly fantastic.

Ultimately, Halloween isn't quite as scary as I remembered it, but it's still quite the fright-fest, and it's the golden standard when it comes to Hollywood slasher flicks. Many franchises have attempted to imitate this film, but nothing will ever quite reach the bar in the slasher genre that Halloween set. So, if you're in the mood for a scary movie tonight, give this one a shot. It's sure to give you a scare or two.

Favorites: HORROR MOVIE SCORES

While great films are generally multi-faceted in their effectiveness, taking a solid screenplay and talented actors to craft an enjoyable cinematic experience, the best films also incorporate strong musical scores in order to set the overall mood. While some of the most iconic orchestral scores spawn from dramatic (i.e., The Godfather) or action (i.e., Star Wars) films, the horror genre has presented a plethora of memorable themes that continue to haunt viewers years past their original release dates. So, to start my "6 Days of Halloween," I've compiled my thirteen favorite horror film scores in order to set the mood for the days leading up to All Hallow's Eve. These are the scores that have stuck with me personally, haunting my dreams and reminding me of the horror that their films conveyed. Mind you: for this particular list, I ordered them in terms of their ability to scare me. Essentially, on a list of my favorite scores of all time, some of these might be ordered in a different way. So without any further delay, here's the list of my favorite horror movie scores. Don't let them keep you up too late tonight...

13. Child's Play
1988
Composed by: Joe Renzetti


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12. An American Werewolf in London
1981
Composed by: Elmer Bernstein


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11. Rosemary's Baby
1968
Composed by: Krzysztof Komeda


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10. It
1990
Composed by: Richard Bellis


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9. King Kong
1933
Composed by: Max Steiner


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8. Poltergeist
1982
Composed by: Jerry Goldsmith


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7. A Nightmare on Elm Street
1984
Composed by: Charles Bernstein


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6. Saw
2004
Composed by: Charlie Clouser


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5. ThanksKilling
2009
Composed by: Kajmir Royale


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4. Jaws
1975
Composed by: John Williams


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3. The Exorcist
1973
Composed by: Mike Oldfield


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2. Halloween
1978
Composed by: John Carpenter


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1. Psycho
1960
Composed by: Bernard Herrmann

Movie Review: TALES FROM THE SCRIPT

TALES FROM THE SCRIPT

2009
Not Rated


"A writer friend of mine once described screenwriters as 'egomaniacs with low self-esteem."
-- Dennis Palumbo

Tales from the Script is a 2009 documentary directed by Peter Hanson that bounces through a series of interviews with some well-known and renowned Hollywood screenwriters. We get an inside look at the trials and triumphs of the writers of some of the biggest films in Hollywood history, and each story is a little bit different from the next. The audience gets a massive amount of information thrown their way, but it's all pertinent and relevant to the story they're trying to craft. In addition, the film is broken into a number of sections, each prefaced with a scene from a classic film that references the movie-making process.

I'd like to start by saying that this film is by no means for everyone. I think it's safe to say that your average movie-goer isn't going to get excited about a movie talking to screenwriters. No, Tales from the Script is going to reach one of two types of people: 1) people who have legitimate interest in how films start getting made, and 2) writers themselves. As you can probably imagine, I'm rather interested in the writing portion - if you haven't noticed, I tend to write a bit for these reviews - so when I saw this movie sitting on NetFlix's Instant Watch queue, I figured I'd give it a shot. And boy, did I find it fascinating. It's essentially a how-to for screenwriters, getting into the dirt and grit of the screenwriting process. We see the highs and the lows that every screenwriter has had to face, and that's part of the appeal. Sure, there's plenty of moments where the interviewees talk about the troubles they had in their careers, but all you have to do is look at the films they've written to see that they've found a way to make it. Despite all of the pain and strife they may have met early in their careers, they found a way to find success even if it felt like they would never make it that far. So in a sense, it's a story of triumph from which any aspiring writer can gain hope.

Now if you are a casual movie fan, there are a couple things that you might find appealing. First and foremost, the film is jam-packed with reference to a number of films from cinema's past. We have screenwriters talking about dozens of movies, from Taxi Driver to The Bucket List and Alien to Ray. In addition, we get a number of film scenes from movies like Barton Fink, Adaptation. and For Your Consideration. All of this ties in very well to the overall point of the documentary, and it helps move everything along. In addition, we do have a couple of recognizable names in the interviewee list. Most film fans will instant recognize Frank Darabont, John Carpenter and Shane Black; however, also be on the lookout for some fantastic words of wisdom from the likes of Mick Garris, Antwone Fisher and Guinevere Turner, just to name a few.

If you're an aspiring screenwriter, as I have been in the past, then Tales from the Script is an absolute must-see film. I can't speak for the rest of the movie-watching community. I think the film offers an interesting insight into the psyche of the successful screenwriter, but there's definitely a target demographic for this one. If you've ever attempted to make writing your living, do yourself a favor and watch this film. Even if you haven't wanted to write screenplays, there's quite a bit of advice in this documentary that's worth hearing. So again, do yourself a favor. Watch Tales from the Script.

Movie Review Summary
Grade: B+
1.5 Thumbs Up
Rankings
Best Documentary - #16

Addition to Awards
2009: Nominee - Best Documentary

Movie Review: THE THING

THE THING

1982
R

The Thing is a 1982 sci-fi horror film directed by John Carpenter. It follows a group of men stationed at an American outpost in Antarctica. It's never really clarified just why these men are stationed there, but that's neither here nor there. When a pair of Norwegians chase a dog into the American camp and are subsequently killed, helicopter pilot R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell) and Dr. Copper (Richard Dysart) decide to investigate the Norwegian camp. They find no one left alive, but they also find the remains of what looks like some type of humanoid creature. The two bring the corpse back to their base for an autopsy, and upon further examination, it appears to be a human specimen. Still, something seems a little off about the entire situation. When Clark (Richard Masur) puts the dog into the holding pen with the other dogs, it immediately transforms - in rather gory fashion - into some other creature that begins to attack and kill a number of its cellmates. The men are successful in killing the creature which they subsequently learn ingests its prey in order to copy its genetic code, ultimately making a perfect copy of whatever it ate. At this revelation, the men begin to question whether the alien creature had actually infected one of their fellow men. As the creature slowly ravages the outpost, the men become more and more wary of each other in fear that they might have been infected.

In essence, there's not too much of a story hidden inside The Thing. The "creature" - which may force me to alter my list of favorite movie animals and creatures - gets to the camp and begins to terrorize its way through the population. That's basically the entire story. It all comes down to the fact that we're given a story about survival and (dis)trust. It's definitely a film that's more driven by the characters than the plot. We can sit back and watch as the all-male cast bickers and fights about who may or may not be infected. We get a good luck at the various characters brought onto the screen, and it makes the whole situation a little more engaging.

Part of the reason we care so much about the characters is because they're all rather well-acted. I'm not saying that there's any brilliant performances anywhere in The Thing, but everyone's solid enough to be believable. Russell is very good as our lead in this ensemble cast. Everyone else is on about the same level, but Russell's character definitely starts to take center stage after he assumes leadership of the outpost. Aside from him, there's really nobody that my generation will recognize right off the bat (save for Keith David, but he's so young that it took me a moment or two to realize it was actually him).

Where this movie really succeeds is in the atmosphere that Carpenter was able to create. By placing the setting in Antarctica - an isolated place literally at the bottom of the world - the characters aren't really given much opportunity for any type of escape. There's a very claustrophobic component to the film that works to show that, no matter what all these men do, it may all be futile. The horror isn't over-the-top; although there are a few moments of cheap thrills (which I tend to dislike), they are definitely few and far between. Carpenter does well to stick to suspense, showing rather than telling. There are a number of attacks that we never actually see, adding to the fact that we never really know who was infected and who wasn't infected until the man is ultimately exposed. There's a lot of sleight of hand with the camera work and the editing, and I think it works to the benefit of this film. Kudos, Mr. Carpenter.

Overall, this is an effective sci-fi thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the screen fades to black. Be on the lookout for a prequel of the same title that will be released this coming October. Apparently, it will be looking at the Norwegian group from the beginning of this film, but we'll have to wait and see. It could very well be terrible, but that shouldn't take away from the fact that John Carpenter's The Thing is extremely good and definitely worth your time.

Movie Review Summary:

Grade: B+
2 Thumbs Up