Movies you've just watched

[Sumez]

I've really tried to like Carpenter, I feel like I should. And to be fair, I'm still missing a lot of his movies. But I've seen The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble In Little China, and Escape From New York. And none of them really did anything for me.
I mean, they are fine. But I wouldn't launch him into my favorite directors list. He's cool though.

Unpopular opinion I know

[BIL]

I've really tried to like Carpenter, I feel like I should. And to be fair, I'm still missing a lot of his movies. But I've seen The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble In Little China, and Escape From New York. And none of them really did anything for me.
I mean, they are fine. But I wouldn't launch him into my favorite directors list. He's cool though.

Unpopular opinion I know

They Live is worth a go! Won't age, at least in our lifetimes, sadly. Legendary BACK ALLEY WEAPONS BEATDOWN from Messrs. Piper and David too.

But it's possible you're an elitist prick Nah, if Thing, EFNY, and Big Trouble don't do much for you, he's probably not your bag. Man's GLORY DAYZ

(unlike Thing, I find Halloween more impressively made - so economical! - than a superior horror in its own right. Enjoyable, archetypal, but didn't blow me fookin socks off as a young douchebag nor an auld snooty prick. tbh my favourite thing about HW1 is LAURIE SWEET TITS Although the opening asylum break is class too now I think back! )

I actually found EFNY misleading at first, it's not a badass stealth action film like its retroactive MGS rep might suggest. More of a weird dystopian jungle trip. I liked it entirely more than Weenie though!

A left-field pick, only produced by JC, but consider Halloween III: Season Of The Witch. A sadly short-lived attempt to make Halloween the anthology series it was always intended as, before the OG villain's popularity mandated it be Mikey-chan's Kimya no Bouken. Yawn!

HWIII, now that is some crazy shit! Super inventive and odd, I won't even obliquely describe the premise, it's some authentic MADSTEELDARKNESS bro! As some tribute, I maintain a list of FILMS THAT SHOULDA BEEN HALLOWEEN IV

I remember his Christine adaptation being unexpectedly excellent, too but it's been a minute. (not to give the BULLSHIET "King Adaptations Always Suck" fallacy undue cred! it just seems less-mentioned, compared to his titanic cult hits... Prince Of Darkness is fun too, brilliant in some ways, though very flawed opposite Thingy)

Elvis too? That sounds so rad, I saw it once as a young COOLEGE douchebag, but was too refreshed to do anything but holler the tunes while being elbowed repeatedly. :3 I should rewatch it methinks!

[sumdumgoy]

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[Lord British]

I've really tried to like Carpenter, I feel like I should. And to be fair, I'm still missing a lot of his movies. But I've seen The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble In Little China, and Escape From New York. And none of them really did anything for me.
I mean, they are fine. But I wouldn't launch him into my favorite directors list. He's cool though.

Unpopular opinion I know

Nothing wrong with that! The most important thing is that you're being honest about your response.

Truth be told, I feel the same way about another idolized director held high by many vociferous fans, who are all sitting keyboard-ready to shame me for my supposed lack of knowledge and/or understanding of art every time I deride his name. And it's an opinion as unpopular as yours.

Spit it out

It's not all about "hate". Sometimes it's just indifference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pnwE_Oy5WI

I can make a list of directors I don't like or underappreciate. The only one I fucking hate is Christopher Nolan (except for Memento).

I started off well with Tarkovsky; the first time I saw Stalker I was very impressed since it felt like such a new and original experience. I fell asleep during Andrei Rublev like four times, but looking back at it I can appreciate several moments that are burned in my brain. But I struggled to finish the rest of his movies (except for Ivan's Childhood, but that movie is to Tarkovsky like The Straight Story is to Lynch) as I thought they were too pretentious to me. AND THE FUCKING REVIEWS ON LETTERBOXD. I just wanted to crawl in there and slap some people. An then there's your Bela Tarr and Apichatpong Weerasethakul films etc that are also not my cup of tea.

There's plenty of sacred cows I don't mind kicking in the rear, but mostly I feel "to each their own".

EXCEPT FOR THAT HACK CHRISTOPHER NOLAN

[sumdumgoy]

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[Lord British]

Spit it out

It's not all about "hate". Sometimes it's just indifference.

I can make a list of directors I don't like or underappreciate. The only one I fucking hate is Christopher Nolan (except for Memento).

Hoo, boy... I dunno!

I was thinking of starting a thread on things in/about movies that you can't stand, and mine is movies done by directors who are more concerned with the rigid, technical side of filmmaking, rather than with characters or writing (where the latter is simply fodder to showcase the former). Those type of movies always leave me feeling cold and alienated, and if you dare honestly criticise the director's work with your response to it, you attract the ire of the 2-DEEP-4-U Klub that treats you like a dirty pleb. Their movies make me feel like I'm visiting a museum of modern art where it's like, "Okay, that's cool and all, and I can appreciate the hard work and the effort... but it feels more like a showcase for hosannas to the architect."

Spoiler

You want me to say it? Really?

Spoiler

Are you sure?! The monkey's paw beckons you!

Spoiler

Stanley Kubrick (2) HL = The Killing (1956)

And regarding Nolan, you're not alone. I got a real buzz out of Memento when I was a teen, but once you get over the whole messed-chronology angle, his movies bore me. (I revisited it on the Criterion Channel last month, and I wasn't convinced.)
'
Except Following, that one's okay.

Not a Kubrick fan? Fine by me. But that "2" in your parenthesis means the # of films you've seen from him, and that's not the right #, correct?

Also, I haven't seen Following, I'll check that one out.

[sumdumgoy]

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[sumdumgoy]

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[PC Engine Fan X!]

Not a Kubrick fan? Fine by me. But that "2" in your parenthesis means the # of films you've seen from him, and that's not the right #, correct?

Ah, okay, I thought it meant the number of movies of his I enjoyed, lol.

The correct number for me would be 10.

For sumdumgoy,

What's your take/opinion on the classic sci-fi film of Stanley Kubrick's "2001"? Sure, I saw the rare "Closed Captioned" version in 35mm print version of 2001 back in 1982 -- only time that I've seen it with English subtitles included (primarily for the hard-of-hearing/deaf audiences, of course).

I recall watching the 1984 sequel of "2010: The Year We Make Contact" in 35mm print version at the local movie theater and was intrigued/mesmerized with the black monolith's return appearance (or multitudes of them) -- the ending with "two suns shining" was quite different & thought-provoking. Too bad the third sequel of the 2061 film has never materialized.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[sumdumgoy]

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[PC Engine Fan X!]

For sumdumgoy,

What's your take/opinion on the classic sci-fi film of Stanley Kubrick's "2001"?

As my mom used to say, "Yeah, classic snoozefest." Better to ask Lord British for his take instead. He's the Stanley fan.

Besides, it's not fresh in my mind, and I wanna stay in a good mood for my midnight revisit of Basket Case.

Yes, the epic special effects were mind-blowing, especially just for the innovative "Slit-scan" warp effect scene alone with main character, David Bowman, inside the space pod vehicle itself warping to a mysterious destination unknown and later on, is finally revealed.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[sumdumgoy]

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[RGC]

Scarecrow (1973) Dir. Jerry Schatzberg

Spoiler

Gene Hackman puts in an effortless performance as Max, a tough and uptight ex-con who preempts conflict with a good punch in the chops. He didn't idle away his six years in the joint, but spent the time planning, always planning, for that big business venture on the outside that'll see him straight (his own car wash). Heading toward Pittsburgh to set up business, he crosses paths with carefree ex-navy man, Francis (Pacino), who has plans of his own to finally meet his child. Whether his offspring is a boy or girl, he has no idea. He just hopes his estranged partner will forgive him for abruptly shipping out and let him see the kid. Max and Francis (“Lion”) take a shine to each other and, as they hitch rides from town to town (and bar to bar), make a pact to start the car washing business together - if Max can keep his scrappy impulses under control and not get busted again.

You can see why Hackman wanted to move into comedy as his career progressed; his fears about being typecast as a bully boy were well founded. Here he's something of a tamer, yet more complex version of French Connection's Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle. Whereas Doyle uses his fists as just another tool to get the job done, Max brawls because belligerence is in his nature, because he's volatile and feels threatened, and because he harbours a general contempt that few can get close enough to understand.

It's Lion who tries to get past all that and tease out his lighthearted side. He has an immediate infatuation with Max and seems to see right through his guarded outer layers to something presumably worth discovering within. If there’s a latent sexual element it's never realised, except through some curiosity Lion expresses over how Max got laid when he was in prison (which Max refuses to divulge, though the answer is obvious). Later it's implied they share a bed with a woman Max picks up. So, clearly there's some degree of physical openness very early in their relationship - although that one instance may have just been a moment of booze fueled abandonment. Their friendship is intense though, no two ways about that. Jealousy and possessiveness are other prominent components.

Max has a conspicuous quirk: he wears many layers of thin clothing to keep himself warm. Rather than wax wanky pop-psych on whether this is supposed to symbolise his internal protective barriers or his need to feel secure, which I don't think we can know about him anyway, you could just interpret this trait on a pragmatic level as a tactic to survive the changing, at times hostile elements as he drifts from state to state, carrying everything he owns. He's cold, rancorous and brusque in manner. Somewhere in the vicinity of a Bar-fly era Charles Bukowski or perhaps even a Jake La Motta. But he smiles a lot, has a strong magnetism, and either repels or attracts - nothing in between. Few are indifferent to Max, I noted.

Lion's personality is so much louder, yet in spite of this is almost entirely in Max's shade for the first two acts. He dances around on the periphery, eyes wide like a child, trying to teach Max how to become an amusing scarecrow (to overcome conflict). The make ‘em laugh approach. Then suddenly the foolish, unguarded Lion becomes the centre of everything. What follows en route to Detroit and thereafter is so darkly downbeat, it almost makes me reluctant to recommend the film. It turns out being a lighthearted scarecrow bears the heavy price of being ill-equipped to deal with really shitty treatment from others. Lion should have learned a thing or two from Max.

I suspect there's an awful lot you could mine from these two characters on repeated viewings. I've never seen Pacino quite like this. Very far removed from his “Great ass!” character(s), that's for sure!

Loved the Day of the Dead write up btw, sumdumgoy! I never tire of that one.

[sumdumgoy]

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[sumdumgoy]

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[PC Engine Fan X!]

Basket Case (1982)

WHAT IS THE SECRET DUANE IS HIDING IN THE BASKET?

Spoiler

"Movies are so rarely great art, that if we cannot appreciate great trash, we have very little reason to be interested in them."
~ Pauline Kael | Trash, Art, and the Movies (1969)

Spawned from the depths of that notoriously seedy 42nd St. in New York City, Basket Case is a love letter by a grindhouse aficionado, for grindhouse aficionados. Director Frank Henenlotter grew up living the experience of those grungy moviehouses throughout the 1970s, each with their own distinct atmosphere and audience, lapping up one on-screen atrocity after another that was far from both the high art of cinema and safe Hollywood fare. Gratuitous nudity, BDSM romps, and buckets of blood & guts were not only served, but expected, with crowds turning hostile and pelting the screen with their drinks if what was up there didn't deliver on its poster promises.

The promise here is simple: Duane and Belial are siamese twins seeking revenge against the doctors who seperated them against their will and left the small, deformed one for dead. But to get to the rest, they have to travel to The Big Apple, and the only way they can do it safely is by keeping Belial in a conspicuously large wicker basket, prompting the question from everyone, "What's in the basket?"

At first, I feel like Duane does, a little disoriented from all the street garbage, neon lights, porno shops and movie theatres. These dilapidated settings with their perpetually lived-in feel are so actively unclean, I can practically smell them. And every person he comes across are such characters in themselves, not even a low-budget script can get in the way of their amusing personalities. (The movie leans into them for comic relief.) Well, at least the room at the Hotel Broslin ain't so bad. It's not home, but... it's a room.

Duane seems like such an innocent young man, coming down from Upstate on his first trip to New York, reacting to everything with a kind of subtle, but reasonable bewilderment; you believe him when he tells his date, Sharon, that he's mostly kept to himself. And when his new hotel neighbour Casey asks him what he does, he tells her he sorts letters, and she replies, "You're a mailman?!" and busts out laughing.

Later, we learn that, even though Duane and Belial were able to communicate telepathically while conjoined, after the surgeons seperated them against their will, Duane became no longer capable of communicating to Belial in that fashion... but Belial still can with him. (At least, this is what Duane admits over drinks with Casey.) This gives me the disturbing sensation that maybe, just maybe these thoughts of revenge aren't coming from this little demon, but might be the result of Duane's dual trama of his mother's death at their childbirth and the brothers unwilling seperation. And to add in another layer, in a flashback the dad cries out, "It killed its own mother!" leaving the suggestion that the mother's death from childbirth wasn't natural. "He always knows what I'm thinking," Duane says, and when Casey replies that he's giving her the creeps, it's not just her. "I don't know which one of us is worse," Duane replies.

And his "little" brother is somethin' else! Nothing Belial does belies his namesake, from the grunting, snorting and spitting while he eats (the basket shakes to his meals), to the ear-splitting shrieks, screams and reaction hissing to any given situation. He's a murderous demon with an insatiable appetite for destuction (evisceration being his specialty), and a lust to match his brother's (his pitovtal "love scene" with the cute & busty Terri Susan Smith is one that I'm sure BIL here would appreciate).

When it comes to exploitation, Basket Case delivers. What makes this movie doubly-strange is just how assured it is in its moviemaking. Every camera angle, every edit, every effect... this was directed by a guy who knew the genre inside and out, and filmed his movie like he already knew what to do. (As a fan, I know that impulse during a movie, where you think changes and edits in your mind to fix the bad movie you're watching and make it better.) Nothing can reasonably be argued against its competantcy, and it's a kind of marvel in itself that it came out feeling more expensive than it did! (The movie was completed on a paltry $35,000 budget.)

Like 1977's wild Japanese horror-comedy House, Basket Case swaggers along with a kind of unbelievable confidence that says, "Hey, world, here I am! Come with me, and let's have some fun." Trashy fun, yes, but that kind of hard-to-resist fun... like a hosed-down sow going back into the yard, it's hard for it not to side-eye that mud puddle, 'cause it knows how great it would feel to wallow in it for a bit!

As Kael pointed out in her essay, "There is so much talk now about the art of film that we may be in danger of forgetting that most of the movies we enjoy are not works of art... if we’ve grown up at the movies, we know that good work is continuous not with the academic, respectable tradition, but with the glimpses of something good in trash.... Trash has given us an appetite for art."

The above article has a brief mention of the campy Hausu (aka House) that debuted back in 1977. What's your opinion on it, sumdumgoy? Not to mention that non-conjoined twins do have the ability to communicate telepathically and are able finish each others sentences if spoken verbally.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[sumdumgoy]

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[GaijinPunch]

I've really tried to like Carpenter, I feel like I should. And to be fair, I'm still missing a lot of his movies. But I've seen The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble In Little China, and Escape From New York. And none of them really did anything for me.

This is the litmus test to see if you have a soul or not. You maybe the only person here to ever fail.

[GaijinPunch]

The Florida Project

I downloaded this when it first came to streaming ages ago, and it expired. With all of the Oscar buzz around Sean Baker, I figured it would be good fodder for a flight. Willem Defoe plays a likeable, but visibly irritated, manager of a shit hole hotel in Florida, which has some extremely colorful inhabitants - including the world's worst mother, whom the story largely centers around. Touching in some ways, and despite being set in modern day, will take Gen-X'ers back to a time when kids could take adventures without the helicopter parents breathing down their necks. Not a pretty tale, and I'm pretty sure not a rare one either, sadly. Despite the serious tone, there are still some laughs, and the majority of it isn't too hard to watch.

[cj iwakura]

The Florida Project

I downloaded this when it first came to streaming ages ago, and it expired. With all of the Oscar buzz around Sean Baker, I figured it would be good fodder for a flight. Willem Defoe plays a likeable, but visibly irritated, manager of a shit hole hotel in Florida, which has some extremely colorful inhabitants - including the world's worst mother, whom the story largely centers around. Touching in some ways, and despite being set in modern day, will take Gen-X'ers back to a time when kids could take adventures without the helicopter parents breathing down their necks. Not a pretty tale, and I'm pretty sure not a rare one either, sadly. Despite the serious tone, there are still some laughs, and the majority of it isn't too hard to watch.

Having gone to Orlando every year, and being a lifelong Floridian, it's the most accurate depiction of the state I've ever seen.

[GaijinPunch]

Having gone to Orlando every year, and being a lifelong Floridian, it's the most accurate depiction of the state I've ever seen.

It felt a bit harsh for me to say that, but there was a voice back in my head saying, "there's a ton of parts of Florida where this shit is happening right now." Everywhere has their dumps - everywhere. I think what makes Florida special, is that they are at most a stone's throw from the tourist traps, so they're quite unavoidable if you go to Florida for just about any reason. I have friends in Miami and I go from time to time, and it's always pretty wild. Then again, I live in San Francisco and need to find a new place to live. My last was Nob Hill which is by all accounts a nice hood (and in fact, was traditionally the bougie part of town), but just 4-5 blocks from the Tenderloin - the likes of which I have never seen anywhere on the fucking planet, and I travel quite a bit. Ironically I don't feel it's that dangerous. I wouldn't walk through it as a woman but as a tall man, with a decent stride, it's not bothered me. However it is definitely not for the weak-stomached.

[GaijinPunch]

Blue Chips

I'm a big fan of The Rewatchables podcast, even though I don't follow sports in the least. I actually am a bit bummed when they do movies I've not seen. They've been on a roll so I went ahead and watched the movie they covered this past week, which is 1994's Blue Chips: a film about paying off college basketball players, starting Nick Nolte and Shaq. Directed by... William Friedkin of all people. I knew none of the famous basketball payers besides Shaq, so that novelty was lost on me. In fact I went into this movie totally blind. I wasn't sure if it was a comedy or what. Given that, it took a while for it to figure out what it wanted to be. There's some accidental comedy in it, and Nick Nolte being a pissed off grumpy coach (aren't they all?) is actually pretty endearing. The actual games throughout are somewhat anti-climatic, as it's more about winning while sticking to one's morals (or not). Nothing I'm going to rewatch (ironically) or recommend but it was somewhat entertaining. It was loosely based on UCLA and a specific coach. So, I learned something.

[Sumez]

The Florida Project

I downloaded this when it first came to streaming ages ago, and it expired. With all of the Oscar buzz around Sean Baker, I figured it would be good fodder for a flight.

This has been on my watch-list since I saw Red Rocket earlier this year. What "streaming" were you able to find it on? I annoyingly haven't been able to dig up any other Sean Baker movies anywhere, but I nearly pulled the trigger on some blurays the other day.

[Lord British]

Having gone to Orlando every year, and being a lifelong Floridian, it's the most accurate depiction of the state I've ever seen.

It felt a bit harsh for me to say that, but there was a voice back in my head saying, "there's a ton of parts of Florida where this shit is happening right now." Everywhere has their dumps - everywhere. I think what makes Florida special, is that they are at most a stone's throw from the tourist traps, so they're quite unavoidable if you go to Florida for just about any reason. I have friends in Miami and I go from time to time, and it's always pretty wild. Then again, I live in San Francisco and need to find a new place to live. My last was Nob Hill which is by all accounts a nice hood (and in fact, was traditionally the bougie part of town), but just 4-5 blocks from the Tenderloin - the likes of which I have never seen anywhere on the fucking planet, and I travel quite a bit. Ironically I don't feel it's that dangerous. I wouldn't walk through it as a woman but as a tall man, with a decent stride, it's not bothered me. However it is definitely not for the weak-stomached.

I'd know nothing w/o rock lyrics (Thanks Rancid)

Realize you're dehumanized
You criticize your existence
It's your demise when no sun arise
When you're paralyzed by your lack of resistance
She know she is
She knows she's going
Down below where the fire's glowing
Tenderloin Tenderloin Tenderloin
The tricks she gets them she's not a victim
She makes a list of them and reads them all alone
For money she's walking down on larkin'
In T.I. they're rocking all night long

But actually I've read about the Tenderloin squats in a number of books

[RGC]

Having gone to Orlando every year, and being a lifelong Floridian, it's the most accurate depiction of the state I've ever seen.

...the Tenderloin - the likes of which I have never seen anywhere on the fucking planet, and I travel quite a bit. Ironically I don't feel it's that dangerous. I wouldn't walk through it as a woman but as a tall man, with a decent stride, it's not bothered me. However it is definitely not for the weak-stomached.

I was curious about how bad it was out there. Found a couple of YT reports about the place and....man. Well, I won't be going in person anytime soon! Makes me feel very lucky to be where I am. The whole notion of a "harm reduction" program by handing out needles and crackpipes, seems at best oxymoronic. Fentanyl is wiping out hundreds each year in that relatively small zone; a hundred times more potent than morphine.

[RGC]

Loved the Day of the Dead write up btw, sumdumgoy! I never tire of that one.

Thank you! I'm glad to see you back in the thread... I thought maybe something bad happened to you.

I could do with some more of your thoughtful reviews. Good stuff!

I'm all good thanks, just a very erratic and inconsistent poster (and film watcher!). I've always enjoyed reading others' thoughts on movies, but only developed the habit of jotting things down myself in recent times. Who was it that said, I don't remember anything that happens in a film, only how it made me feel? Well, that's me! I've rated thousands of films, but my memory for the detail is shockingly poor. I have some notes I can refer back to now, should the need arise.

The Mule (2018) Dir. Clint Eastwood

Spoiler

Based on a true story about an elderly horticulturalist who gets involved in drug running for the Mexican cartel. Not much to say about this. It's standard late Eastwood directorial fare. Old guy who is more grounded and in touch with reality, because of his advanced years, than everyone around him. One or two gangstas take a slightly implausible shine to the old geezer due to his straight talking, no nonsense ways, and his stubborn refusal to be intimidated. They don't know if he has mega cajones or is just crazy. The film has heart and is unchallenging viewing, thanks to its by-the-numbers storytelling

[cj iwakura]

The Florida Project

I downloaded this when it first came to streaming ages ago, and it expired. With all of the Oscar buzz around Sean Baker, I figured it would be good fodder for a flight.

This has been on my watch-list since I saw Red Rocket earlier this year. What "streaming" were you able to find it on? I annoyingly haven't been able to dig up any other Sean Baker movies anywhere, but I nearly pulled the trigger on some blurays the other day.

Check a local library, mine usually has it.

[vol.2]

I've really tried to like Carpenter, I feel like I should. And to be fair, I'm still missing a lot of his movies. But I've seen The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble In Little China, and Escape From New York. And none of them really did anything for me.
I mean, they are fine. But I wouldn't launch him into my favorite directors list. He's cool though.

Unpopular opinion I know

I think it's not hard to understand why Carpenter was considered a cult film auteur for so long. He has a very idiosyncratic style that either resonates with you or it doesn't. Not personally liking the aesthetic is a completely valid position, even if you can see that other people who's taste you respect or even admire do.

I'm among the "love Carpenter" people, but I also was very primed on his movies early in my life at the time when his work was a more contemporaneous part of the zeitgeist. I absolutely do not expect everyone I meet and who's taste in movies I respect to like his stuff, and I think it's unfortunate that taste has to be wrapped up in a notion of "cool" or whatever. I wish we could all just appreciate and talk about this stuff without having to dance around all that BS.

[Lord British]

I've really tried to like Carpenter, I feel like I should. And to be fair, I'm still missing a lot of his movies. But I've seen The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble In Little China, and Escape From New York. And none of them really did anything for me.
I mean, they are fine. But I wouldn't launch him into my favorite directors list. He's cool though.

Unpopular opinion I know

I think it's not hard to understand why Carpenter was considered a cult film auteur for so long. He has a very idiosyncratic style that either resonates with you or it doesn't. Not personally liking the aesthetic is a completely valid position, even if you can see that other people who's taste you respect or even admire do.

I'm among the "love Carpenter" people, but I also was very primed on his movies early in my life at the time when his work was a more contemporaneous part of the zeitgeist. I absolutely do not expect everyone I meet and who's taste in movies I respect to like his stuff, and I think it's unfortunate that taste has to be wrapped up in a notion of "cool" or whatever. I wish we could all just appreciate and talk about this stuff without having to dance around all that BS.

I don't feel the pressure to like Carpenter as much as I do Cronenberg, he's been attributed moreso with that "Thinking Man's Horror Director" tag, so if you don't love it you're considered a dumbo. With Carpenter it's never a direct hit with me, but overall I enjoy his films. With Cronenberg it always feels like I'm missing something. Also, I almost always feel w/ DC that his films are too talky.

[cj iwakura]

While perusing the 'hey, this is about to leave, you've probably never heard of it' section of Criterion Channel, I happened upon this little strange slice of Iron Curtain Phantasmagoria.

https://www.criterionchannel.com/leavin ... videos/viy



A wayward priest is tasked with watching the corpse of a recently deceased victim who may or may not be undead.



There is no way Nobuhiko Obayashi(House) wasn't a huge fan of this. It goes from 0 to 60 just like it did, if not even wilder.

I'm not familiar with the ghost story that inspired it, and the first half drags, but boy, when it fires, it goes all out.