Synopsis: A gothic-horror tale centering on the life of vampire Barnabas Collins and his run-ins with various monsters, witches, werewolves and ghosts. Based on the cult TV series.
Release Date: May 11, 2012
Thoughts: I just….don’t know. I mean, it has all the elements to a movie that would be a sure thing for me but something just seems a tad off. I know that the TV series and subsequent movies and newer series are all very stylized — so in that respect I think that Tim Burton is an inspired choice as director. I’m also quite glad that he’s seemed to ditch his carnival of CGI for something a bit more old school Burton. I grow weary of the constant presence of Depp and Bonham Carter in all of Burton’s films and feel at this point all three need to seek different co-workers for the betterment of their own careers. Still…Pfeiffer looks wonderful and this may just have that 70’s kitsch vibe that is so hard to mimic convincingly. All in all, it has an interesting feel to it and here’s hoping the strange family of Barnabas Collins translates well to the big screen.
Synopsis: A fledgling actress is lured to a remote mansion for a screen-test, soon discovering she is actually a prisoner in the middle of a blackmail plot.
Stars: Mary Steenburgen, Roddy McDowall, Jan Rubes
Director: Arthur Penn
Rated: R
Running Length: 100 minutes
TMMM Score: (4.5/10)
Review: Don’t you just love a move title that has a double meaning? We Minnesotans understand fully what the dead of winter is even though we’ve had it relatively easy this season. The dead of winter referenced in the title of this odd little 80’s film could reference any number of things that befall our heroine.
I think it’s sometimes forgotten that Steenburgen is an Oscar winning actress. Her Supporting Actress nod for Melvin and Howard seems to go unbilled whenever I read an interview with her or see her name in the credits of a movie. When this film was released she was flirting with leading lady status but it ultimately wasn’t to be. While I enjoy the bulk of her work, Steenburgen always seems to be a better fit in a supporting role that a full on lead. She’s done great work in Philadelphia, Parenthood, and Back to the Future III that confirm she’s got the chops…even if it means she doesn’t have to do the heavy lifting.
Here, however, she gets the heavy-lifting with less than stellar results. The fault isn’t entirely hers, though; the red herring filled script wants to be so Hitchcock that it ends up playing like a cheap knock off of his work. I can see where on paper it looked to be a winner with its remote setting, chilly climate, and small cast. That’s about where the good ideas end in our tale that stretches believability to new heights the more it tries to throw the audience for a loop. It’s not that we can see where it’s all headed, we just feel we’ve been on this trip before and have visited the gift shop.
Rubes and McDowell give equally weird performances (come to think of it, did McDowell ever not give a weird performance?) and they at least create characters that you want to see get their comeuppance. Steenburgen tries to make playing three different characters work but they all end up seeming like the same woman in different clothes. She’s not helped by a hokey script or the old-fashioned direction of Penn who should have done more with the material. The final fifteen minutes provide some spark but by then its too little too late. For a chilly winter tale, skip this one and track down your favorite Hitchcock thriller to warm you up.
Final note…I do love the poster. You can see where that would hook an audience. Were the movie as involving…
Synopsis: Bilbo Baggins, a Hobbit, journeys to the Lonely Mountain accompanied by a group of dwarves to reclaim a treasure taken from them by the dragon Smaug.
Release Date: December 14, 2012
Thoughts: How they even considered making this movie without Peter Jackson is beyond me. More so, how Jackson even considered NOT being involved with this is crazy. I get that he was exhausted after the epic mountain he climbed with The Lord of the Rings trilogy but what he brought to that table was unparalleled. Original director Guillermo del Toro would have made a perfectly fine version of The Hobbit but I was so happy when Jackson was officially confirmed as stepping back into the director’s chair.
The first preview from Part 1 has been out for a while but I recently caught it in 3D and got excited all over again for this December release. The original trilogy of films were true event movie-going and if what we’re seeing here is any indication; The Hobbit will be another jewel in the crown of all involved.
