Isherwood

Aja shows audiences an exhibition of bloody violence in the most stylish form currently available. With a perfect rendering of the psychological attachments to the individual characters (a very uncertain order on the death certificate!) and the utmost sense of craftsmanship in handling the tension, the horror, and the viewer's disgust, the director really does work miracles. The excellent soundtrack often does much more than the standard "jump-scare" and the endless desert environment is also quite unpleasant. However, it somewhat falters due to the poorly chosen script, but it is one in which a good dose of cynical detachment kicks in, meaning that the overly pathetic ending so many people talk about is more so funny, and I mean that in a good way. This is because the American national anthem sung by the mutant, or the entrance of one of the protagonists with a shotgun in hand to the accompaniment of an ultra-heroic musical score clearly proves that Aja has his head screwed on straight in addition to his talent. And if the plot of his next film is less predictable, it's clearer than ever that things will still happen in Hollywood thanks to this young Frenchman.

Besson's screenplay is the standard bullshit about saving a city, honor, and one babe. The extra political agitprop is more or less laughable, but director Pierre Morel works wonders to turn the film into a non-stop action affair, where the longest spoken intermezzo is ten seconds long so that the protagonists can spout some ultra-cool catchphrase and then launch into another parkour inferno. They’ll be climbing on balconies, and jumping on hoods, and there is also some shooting. Viewers won't even bother to count after a while. In terms of an audience of disposable consumers of contemporary French exports, it’s the ultimate hit. I admit it, I had a great time too!

Kevin Smith threw away the traditional methods of romantic comedies and built his own distinctive version of love on the skeleton of sexual differences and sins of youth. Apart from a certain amount of "cultivated vulgarity," the film is also witty and insightful, but at the same time so straightforwardly true that most mature (?) viewers will bite their lips while watching it. The cast seems oblivious to the camera and they just spew out gut-wrenching dialogue worthy of a genius that all disappointed lovers should write in their diaries. If you’re not searching for your own Amy, you can safely avoid this.

New Jersey at night, full of dark corners both in the streets and in relatively luxurious apartments, in a directorial visual fetish that you won’t easily forget. The camera work, filtering, and editing may remind you of Tony Scott at first, but Wayne Kramer gets even tougher after a few minutes and shows that you can do wonders with a $15 million budget and an R rating. Pleasantly uninhibited sex, furious shooting, and such a concentration of "fucks" that there was no room left for any other words. This doesn't prevent the director (who is also the screenwriter) from making some impressive breaks in the plot, meaning there is no shortage of tension and viewer interest. The lamentations over the ending are the misguided cries of those who are simply unable to accept that certain genre rules were broken (just between you and me) for once.

Even before Brad Bird signed on with Pixar, he made his highly distinctive project, which unfortunately did not reach a wider audience. The motifs of the 1950s, the arms race, the fear of the red nuclear threat, the first conquest of space, but also the period when every boy's bedside table had Superman adventure books are excellently tied to the simple scenario of a pathetic friendship between a 50-foot robot and a lonely boy. Bird has left none of this out, and the result is an absolutely stunning blend that is unlike anything seen in the children's animation genre. Perhaps that's why this film can be appreciated by adults rather than by children, who would certainly not like the ultra-militant ending. However, it is part of it, since nobody can resist the robot's charisma, which is directly soaked in Vin Diesel's "dubbing."

It's too bad that the filmmakers didn't keep the working title Sadomasochists From Beyond the Grave to distribute the film, as it's a much more eloquent description of what takes place in the film. There are incredible doses of splatter, and even though the ravages of time have bitten off a pretty solid slice, one can't help but smile deeply at the work of visual effects creator Bob Keen and especially director Clive Barker, who really doesn't spare any ideas and made the most of a simple script. Fortunately, the wooden actors were clearly outclassed by the "otherworldly" crew led by the demonic Pinhead, and whether it's the scene of Frank's resurrection or the close-up of the Cenobites' job description, everything is wrapped in a wonderfully eerie atmosphere, supported by Christopher Young's excellent score. "Beautiful" (maybe without the quotation marks).

A journey along the Trans-Siberian Railway is no mean feat even without concentrated evil traveling on the train with you. But when the duo of Christopher Lee & Peter Cushing face off against it, you know it's going to be a battle. A standard horror game of "who ate off my plate" is played out in the simple location of a train traveling through a vast wasteland with no one to help you, but it’s filmed with maximum impact. The monster is still scary even today, and even after a plot twist with one major destruction, the tension doesn't wane and the film remains an excellent spectacle. All the actors deserve the lion's share of the credit, the music is also impressive, and the red eyes of Evil clutch the viewer by the throat. Then, at the end, we get to see the black humor of Telly Savalas, who really enjoyed playing his vodka-soaked officer. The film is an unmissable page in the thick textbook of horror.

This very unconventional detective story (mistakenly called a horror) is based mainly on the strange mysterious atmosphere of a small British island ruled by pagan customs instead of Christianity. The confrontation between the bigoted policeman and the local natives, who acknowledge an ancient deity, escalates into an exquisite ending, where it is up to each viewer to decide whether they prefer the human sacrifice to the goddess of the earth or the words "The Lord is my shepherd." Edward Woodward excels in the lead role of the strongly religious detective, and like Christopher Lee opposite him, his charisma is evident in every frame. The powerful experience is further enhanced by the strange folk music and dance rituals, which surprisingly do not disturb (and yet this is no musical), but simply belong to the film like everything else. The last ritual gives unpleasant chills.

A celebration of values such as poverty, humility, and indomitable spirit. It’s a half-hour of almost dreamlike meditation on this animated work. With its unconventional form, it draws you into a compelling storyline that is not only the ultimate pro-humanist agitation but is also full of pacifist tendencies, coupled with a simple message about the need to preserve natural resources that are irreplaceable. When you tune in to the right mood this becomes the ultimate non-conformist experience.

If it wasn't for the absolutely empty final half hour, this would have been an absolute hit. The chilling atmosphere of the alien invasion, which takes place not in a spectacular style with flying saucers but in a relatively closed form of gradual parasitism, is filmed with such suggestiveness that the absence of "scares" and similar achievements is fully forgivable in director Phillip Kaufmann's film. The work of the team of special effects artists with somewhat overgrown pods is done to perfection, as is the musical accompaniment, strumming not only the musical instruments but also the viewer's tense nerves, which can expect no relief whatsoever. Nobody will be able to get the last shot out of their head.