The Story: Four members of an indie punk band agree to play a gig
at a biker bar in the middle of nowhere, and find themselves in the middle of a neo-Nazi drug war.
Expectations: Horror film critic Dennis Fischer recommended this one to me, but qualified his recommendation by saying "it's borderline horror." Based on the
synopsis I was braced for savage cinema.
Reaction: Likable characters.
Surprisingly lyrical cinematography and editing. 90 minutes of nail-biting tension,
punctuated by key moments of gut-wrenching horror. This was a good one.
And as far as I'm concerned it’s definitely a horror movie—a siege movie in the tradition of ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13, and a prime example of the savage cinema’s ability to tap into viewers' most primal survival instincts, to take us on a haunted hayride ride through our caveman psyches and leave us feeling emotionally spent and cathartically-purged.
And as far as I'm concerned it’s definitely a horror movie—a siege movie in the tradition of ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13, and a prime example of the savage cinema’s ability to tap into viewers' most primal survival instincts, to take us on a haunted hayride ride through our caveman psyches and leave us feeling emotionally spent and cathartically-purged.
Most Nightmare-Worthy Moment: Actually, I think it was realizing
that this was one of Anton Yelchin’s last movies before his tragic death. But that doesn’t mean there aren't plenty of nightmare-worthy moments in the film. It’s a cornucopia of carnage, and the carnage resonates as tragedy because the characters are real.
It's a great, tense film. And I understand people's love of it. But it makes me tremendously uncomfortable and I don't know if I can watch it again! (Whereas, I'll watch BLUE RUIN whenever I get a chance.)
ReplyDeleteThey capture the touring aspect of being in a band perfectly in the first 15-20 minutes too. Jeremy Saulnier had to have been in a band himself in order to nail that as well as he did.
Side-note (and only because BLUE RUIN reminded me of it), have you seen COLD IN JULY yet? On Netflix Instant. As is Jim Mickle's film before that WE ARE WHAT WE ARE. I highly recommend both!
Thanks. COLD IN JULY is now on the list! I watched WE ARE WHAT WE ARE a few years ago, and really liked it. Reviewed here:
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