Annabelle Creation - a Must SEE for Horror Fans

Annabelle Creation (2017) Starring: Anthony LaPaglia/Mullins Dollmaker, Samara Lee/Bee, Lulu Wilson/Linda, Talitha Bateman/Janice, Stephanie Sigman/Sister Charlotte. I saw this in the theater, and remember that it has some good scares and a decent origin story. I liked when the ‘doll’ was in the closet and comes out but under the sheet. When I was a kid, I had child-sized dolls in our house. My sister and I both got one. They were about 3 ft tall. I used to keep mine in the closet --- and I worried about what might be going on in that closet. I have a wild imagination, I admit. This movie actually played on that fear, which made me have a visceral reaction. Needless to say, I don’t like dolls too much. This film starts out with the painter/artist/ dollmaker. It focuses on his story and his family’s story. It’s set in around the 1930s or 1940s. I liked this story and bought into it pretty quickly. He makes dolls that have a similar likeness to his daughter, who is named “Bee”. The little girl likes to play a game with her dad by writing little notes on paper like “Find Me” to start a hide and go seek game. This pulls from the real folklore story that the doll supposedly left notes in the nurses’ apartment like “Help Me”, etc. In this version, the little girl is killed in a freakish car accident. This part really broke my heart, because the child actress playing Bee,-which is short for Annabelle- was just the cutest little thing. It is abrupt and unexpected, but in a way that keeps the plot moving forward. Supposedly from that, the doll becomes haunted by the child. The idea is posed: is it the child or something else? There is some folklore that dolls were originally created to be like effigies to represent humans, and specifically represent the dead. It is said that people make doll-like figures to represent someone they have lost so that the person who passed on can inhabit the doll, and return to their family members. Like, bringing the dead back to life. Folklore said dolls have been used in rituals like this. In some cases, dolls are used to curse others, who have the doll’s likeness. I don’t really know cause I haven’t done a ton of research, but it makes for a really good back story. Then, in the 50s, the home of the dollmaker’s family was turned into a home for girls. One of the girls is Linda, an orphan. There is also Janice, who also is an orphan, with the added challenge of a brace on her leg from Polio. The dollmaker and his wife still live there, like caretakers. Ah, okay. I’ll go with it. There is also the priest and the nun in charge of the orphanage. Interesting premise. I would have had the family move away and made it into a home for the girls, but it’s a choice. Anthony LaPaglia does a good job as the heartbroken dad/dollmaker. The house is interesting, like a cross between a farmhouse and a gothic church. The front door pattern has crosses in it, but at the top the crosses reverse. The dollmaker installed a chair that goes up and down the stairs against the wall, he said it was for his wife but the wife doesn’t use it. Instead, he lets Janice use it. This comes back around later, as a major plot point. The first time Janice uses it, we can see in a dark hall behind her, the outline of the Annabelle doll. It is very faint, but done in a way that if you are paying attention you notice it. Only like 15 minutes into the film, and I was hooked. It felt like it wasn’t even related to the earlier film “Annabelle”. It felt like this should have been the film that was called “Annabelle” and they should have scrapped the Rosemary Baby wannabe film. However, I did understand the tie in between the two at the end. Janice, already at a disadvantage, gets attacked by the spirit in Annabelle, several times. To top that, the older girls bully her. The demon in Annabelle targets Janice because she is supposedly frail. I had sympathy for little Janice. She was tough as nails, and puts up a good fight,--until the end... When that thing was creeping up behind her I was like ‘oh nope’. Things start rather early in the film, and usually I don’t like when films give too much away up front. This time, however, they are so subtle, and sometimes only the audience sees it while the characters do not. It made the suspense build nicely. Then, we got to the whole chair-escalator thing, and then the wheelchair incident --- after that I was like omg! The home itself, with its gothic style, lends itself to have a dark take on a church - with a personality of its own. I also had a lot of sympathy for the nun in this film. She has a very good heart. When the dumb-waiter thing starts acting up on her, again I was like “oh nope.” I have seen those things up close, and they are cool with the tiny door, but they also look like a troll might pop out at you. Something similar happens, but I won’t say what. Don’t let kids play around those things. Things start to build when Janice keeps finding notes being slid under her door, and sometimes being slid right out in front of her. Again, I was like “ok, nope”. Just a note to anyone who moves into a creepy house --- when the landlord says stay out of a room-- stay out of the room. Leave things well enough alone. When that friggin doll stood up under that sheet, then that reveal--- I might have cried a little bit. Linda is Janice’s best friend, and wants to be Janice’s sister. She figures stuff out, and makes an attempt to get rid of the doll. Still, sometimes, things just want to be found, again and again. Those two girls, though, for kids who know what is happening, they tend to go back into that room… a lot… and it has terrible consequences. I liked the fact that they tie in Janice to the next part of the story, which in reality is the first film. Also, I thought that the nod to the real doll was funny. You can see a lookalike of the real doll in one scene. I found out that it was written by the same guy, but it felt like two completely different writers. I saw the tie in with “The Nun”. I’m not sure how I feel about that, building the franchise, but some people might like finding those easter eggs. However, “Annabelle Creation”, it was a film that felt like it could stand on its own two feet. Much like the doll. (shudder) It definitely is a better film than the first one. PS: If anyone wants to search the real origin of this story, you should check out the information on The Warrens. They were the paranormal experts who handled this case. They were based out of Connecticut. Supposedly they picked up a haunted doll, given to them by a client, and it’s name was Annabelle. It was reported to have had an adverse effect on Lorraine as it sat in their car’s back seat. Later, the doll has also been reported to move from place to place on its own. It is currently locked up in a glass and wood case and under constant supervision. The case itself is blessed and painted with holy water on the inside. I have seen it, and the doll is tied down in the chair on which it sits. When I saw it, there were several prayers and sacred items on the case to keep whatever is haunting the doll…. Inside. If you like horror origin stories, check that one out for yourself! You will not be disappointed.

Carnival of Souls (1962)

Carnival of Souls (A Horror Classic!) Starring: Candice Hilligoss/Mary Henry. “Why can’t anybody hear me??!” In this movie, filmed in black and white, there is an odd ‘atmospheric’ tale of a woman who is suffering from either visions or delusions after a terrible car accident. It tells the story of Mary Henry, a beautiful woman who is quiet and seems a bit catatonic. Mary is in a small town, and the film opens with her going for a ride with some of her girlfriends. The film really doesn’t explain much off the bat, just that three girls are driving, and at a stop a guy challenges them to a drag race. Mary isn’t too happy with this, the expression on her face says it all, but she goes along with it. Mary’s friend says something like ‘we’ll show him how to drive’ and drives the car right off a bridge into the river. Yeah, you sure showed him. Then there’s a quick cut to everybody looking over the edge of the bridge, and a search boat on the river. While that is going on, an officer questions the guy who started the whole thing, obviously aware that there is something suspicious. The guy is like ‘no, they were just trying to get around us on the bridge’... sure buddy. Anyway, police are looking for the car and can't find it. While that is happening, Mary is seen walking out of the river up the muddy bank. It is nearly impossible, but she’s there. They take her up the bank and then there is another quick cut to her returning to the bridge, clean, dressed nicely, looking over the water. The search is still going on. Shortly after that, Mary is leaving one job as an organist in this little town for a job as an organist in a church in Utah. Her boss wishes her an unusual farewell, saying though she plays really well she needs to play like she has a soul. Ah - okay. odd. Mary barely responds, but says some very progressive things, such as it is just a job for her and she does not need to be religious to accept a job at a church. Mary is an unusual woman, keeps to herself, and is not a big fan of company. She does not seem to have any husband or boyfriend. People ask her that a lot, and she responds with sentiments that she doesn’t feel all that interested in relationships with anyone. Been there, girl, been there. On her way into town, she is driving late at night and sees a large building in the distance. She glances at it, and seems drawn to it. Then, she sees a man’s face in the reflection of the passenger’s side window. She’s scared but still keeps driving. It disappears and her own face is in the reflection. She makes it into town, and asks the gas station attendant about the building. He fills her in on the details while filling up her gas tank. (Get your mind out of the gutter, he just puts gas in the tank). He says the building is actually a series of buildings, that it used to be a bathhouse at the salt lakes of Utah, but then it was a boardwalk, then a dance hall, and a carnival. He explains it’s closed. She asks how she can get to town, to the boarding house she has booked and he points in an upward direction. This is when camera angles and black and white film make this film strange and atmospheric, because the camera shows the sky and then the film cuts to a dark hall and doorway that opens up to her room at the boarding house. It was the quickest change of scene, that I didn’t really know what was happening until after it happened. If I blinked I would have missed a very different style of scene change. The rest of the film has moments like that, with low to the ground angles, quick cuts to something completely different, then cuts back to what the scene was like before. It makes for a very interesting film. Anyway, she keeps seeing this man’s face -- in the mirror --- in her boarding room window, etc. She is scared, but most of her reactions are very subdued. She even sees the man in the hall, and is startled but does not scream. Then, there is the nice but a bit too friendly landlady ‘Take as many baths as you want, I never mind about that’. What does THAT mean? Also, there is the guy boarding across the hall who keeps asking Mary out. Mary really is just giving a friendly vibe. He tries everything to get her into bed, but then when she questions his motives he’s all like ‘Aw, see, you got the wrong impression of me’. No, my friend, I think Mary has the right impression and has nicely declined multiple times. However, when he comes back after the third or fourth time, she accepts a date. I got the impression she accepted the date to just feel something, to not feel alone. She meets a random therapist on the street who happens to offer advice to her that particular day, and implies that Mary should have some relationships. Yes, that’s right, she is walking down the street and is starting to lose it, and she just happens to bump into a therapist who takes her on as a client the same day. I mean, nothing in this film is set up in a realistic manner, but the whole film is like that, so I just assumed it’s set in a kind of place that has a pinch of realism blended with horror. Anyway, the therapist prompts her to get to the meat of her issues. After a little prying, she admits that she would like to be involved with people, but is struggling with that. She says something like ‘I want to, I feel like I am reaching out for that kind of thing…’, but her words trail off. This was a very intriguing exchange. She seems puzzled by it herself. She also has these strange visions. For example a shop clerk is helping her with a dress one minute, but soon after it is like the clerk or anyone else in the shop can’t see her. There is a very simple wavy effect to the film when the transition happens, and it signals that something is about to happen. Low budget technique, but done in a way that was very effective. In her second therapy session, she decides she will go out to the Carnival by herself and figure out what is going on. The therapist advises against it. She says it feels like at the carnival things will be resolved, and if she has to do it alone, she will. At the carnival, she goes to this area with these large canisters that are hanging from the ceiling. As Mary is walking away from them, they move and make a lot of noise. You can tell that someone on set of this film just moved them on cue, but it is done in a way that makes a jarring noise. I was like ‘hey what the heck just happened’. Again, a very simple technique that worked really well. This occurs again when Mary stares at an indoor slide. There is a very long pause, and then one of the mats slides down it on it’s own. Very simple, yes. Obviously staged, yes. Still, very creepy and it works. After some poking about in the dance hall, Mary finds a stone and throws it into the watery salt flats. There were earlier moments in the film that indicated that the dead man that has been following Mary is in the salty water. Well, the guy rises up, taking a few other dead people along with him. Then there is another quick cut to all of the dead people on the dance floor. The film speeds up sometimes in the scene, making it very crazy looking. It’s so simple, and yet it works. Then Mary sees herself dancing with the dead man. The woman in his arms changes quickly back and forth between being Mary and then another dancer. Mary is thoroughly freaked out and starts screaming. Mary being very cold emotionally works really well because it makes the viewer wonder what is wrong. Only in the last section of the film does she lose her cool. It is a gradual progression, and a big reveal. The last two scenes, the film gives the viewer enough information to show why Mary is so odd. I will not give away more, for those who want to watch it. I highly recommend this film, but watch it in black and white. I found a color version on the web, but I think it would dampen the effects. I think I remember watching it as part of my arts camp in high school. I can see why. It’s such a good spooky film. A+ Side Note: Recently Ghost Adventures went to the real location where this was filmed, it was an old Dance Hall and getaway in the salt flats, which many thought had healing properties. Though the original building has been torn down (sadly), supposedly the site is ACTUALLY haunted with PLENTY of paranormal activity.

EMPEROR : a review

TBH this is not my best review, but it was a movie that made an affect on me, so I'm posting it here. Emperor (2012) Starring Tommy Lee Jones and Matthew Fox This WWII inspired film begins with real footage of the large mushroom cloud of the Atomic Bomb being dropped on Japan. With a quick cut, real footage shows heroic-looking American fighter pilots in their planes flying over during the bombing. I marveled at how the historical footage was shot and appreciated the wartime film clips. I also became uncomfortable at seeing the mushroom cloud, because I realized what that cloud represented. The film is set a few months after the bombings, and at the beginning of the American occupation of Japan. General MacArthur, played by Tommy Lee Jones, briefs his military officials on the next steps of action while on board of a giant aircraft that has landed on an airfield in Tokyo. One of the officials in the briefing is General Bonner Fellers, a cultural expert on Japan, played by Matthew Fox (Party of Five!). Fellers was a real person, a General and advisor to MacArthur. Fellers has a secret that he is hiding from the American military. He has a beautiful Japanese girlfriend, Aya, who has gone missing at the start of the war. Also, since Fellers has been living in Japan for years, he has grown to love the Japanese culture, people, and country itself. Yet, he has to push that all out of his mind and focus on the job at hand…. occupying Japan. In the narration, Fellers says that the Americans must “be seen as liberators, not conquerors” and not ‘impose our will’ on the Japanese. General MacArthur sees it differently. MacArthur, with his “American Swagger” as he calls it, and poor consideration of Japanese customs, contradicts everything Fellers says he wants the American-Japanese relationship to become. Even Fellers intentionally breaks custom when interviewing a former Japanese Prime Minister. He doesn’t bother to take his shoes off when entering the Prime Minister’s home. It’s a calculated sign of disrespect, a show of bravado and power. As an expert of Japanese culture, this is something Fellers would have known. All of these subtle signs show that Americans are in control. The film focuses on Fellers and his internal conflict. He has a few objectives that are at odds with each other. First, he must find the 32 heads of state in Japan, and bring charges against them for war crimes... before many of them try to end their own lives. He also hopes to find the woman he loves. Then, with the slight pull that he has, he tries to guide MacArthur to have some empathy for the Japanese. Also, he has 10 days to interview heads of state to see if Emperor Hirohito should have charges brought on him. If the Emperor is found guilty of inciting war, he could be charged with war crimes and sentenced to death. The ending is surprising and moving. Overall, it was a good film. I saw WWII from a different perspective, that of the Japanese. It made me realize that everyone in war is human, and all have their share of suffering. However, the film was 15 min too long, some stuff about Fellers’ and Aya’s relationship could have been trimmed down. Also, Matthew Fox is playing a guy from 25-35, and he’s about 10 years older than that. He’s good looking and a decent actor so I’ll let it slide. poster image: By Krasnoff Foster Productions/Fellers Film - https://www.imdb.com/media/rm2534318848/tt2103264, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=38700173

Empire of the Sun: A review

FYI - this was Christian Bale's first major role on film! He was the highlight, for sure! Empire of the Sun (1987) (Actors Study) Starring: Christian Bale, John Malkovich, Joe Pantoliano, Ben Stiller, and some others. This film is directed by Stephen Speilberg, and has his style. It is a scrolling giant of a film. It seems like a mural painting of epic size, and a romanticized image of WWII. Yes, it displays grit, destruction and huge sacrifice, but it’s almost idealized. I don’t know if I agree with that sentiment. War is very hard. Like another well known film of Speilberg’s focusing on boyhood (ET), this focused on the experiences of an upper crust British boy during the war. Jaime, played by Christian Bale as a kid, is a boy who wants for nothing while living in a mansion near Shanghai, China. In this era, wealthy British colonized parts of China, building towns similar to ones in England… making themselves at home. Jaime’s family has all the luxuries of England along with plenty of fine art from China. They even have their own British boys school. Jaime lives with his parents and they employ Chinese servants. He is smart, philosophical, but also very spoiled. However, he notices an old Chinese man who is panhandling, and often stares at the man. Perhaps he is questioning the inequalities of life, why he has so much, and the old man has nothing. He asks his father about this, saying they are lucky, but the father brushes it off saying they are ‘lucky’ because he works hard. Ironically, his father is placing a silver coin down on their sprawling yard to play golf beside their pool when he explains he works hard. Yes he may work hard, but the Chinese people have a disadvantage, and this family lives oblivious to that. Things change drastically when Japanese troops invade Shanghai and the surrounding areas. There is a juxtaposition of the wealthy and the poor when Jaime and his family are off to a costume party. In their fancy car with Chinese chauffeur, they pass by throngs of Chinese people who are running the opposite way in fear. They are running away from the Japanese invasion. The family still attends the party. Jaime has an obsession with planes, and he sees a downed plane that has been stuck in the mud for a while. When playing in it, he is confronted head on by Japanese troops but survives the encounter. The next day the invasion comes to their neighborhood. The family piles into the car again with the chauffeur to leave, but it is too late. They end up in the crowds. They run together, but Jaime drops his toy plane which he goes back for and he is separated. This is the most memorable scene I think, with the boy shouting on the top of a box looking for his mother. But it illustrates how Jaime is so oblivious of what necessities are, because he goes for a plane over being with his mother. It is a mistake, and a lack of understanding on his part, but it costs him. He spends a long time alone in his old home, which has been abandoned and emptied by Japanese troops. That wasn’t that believable to me, because like the pool water disappears and I was like, ‘how long is this kid staying there without supplies?’. There were a few cans of food, but that's it. Eventually he meets up with a guy Frank who takes him to this American who does bartering for a living, or stealing. This American, Basie, feeds the boy and lets them sleep there. Basie is played by John Malkovich. Basie is pretty much a “Fagan”, if you have ever seen “Oliver” or read Oliver Twist. He runs an operation of thieving, or taking stuff from people in the war who already are dead or have been captured. He actually tries to sell Jaime, I think, in one scene -- although Chinese was being spoken so I don’t have a clear idea. Anyway, the boy bonds with this thief and his business partner. Jaime gets his name changed to Jim by the group and, from this point on to me became like “Oliver”, the orphan boy, and Basie was Fagan with a group of thugs. They go back to Jim’s old neighborhood, which Jim calls ‘opulent’. Jim is doing this to keep in good graces with them. However, when they get back they get captured by Japanese, and sent to a concentration camp. Basie and Frank end up in the American wing of the camp, Jim ends up in the British section. Jim learns quickly how to survive, and is hustling for a while… he picked up some bartering skills from his idol Basie. The difference between Basie and Jim is that Jim wants to be a caregiver to everyone. He also learns to help people in the camp’s hospital. In contrast Basie only is out for himself and his needs, and if it helps someone else, then that’s ok. Although Basie does become a protector to the boy. There is a secondary plot where Jim is fascinated with the planes in the hangar next to the camp, but they are Japanese. This almost gets him killed a few times. The planes are Japanese, but he doesn’t see it that way, he just sees planes that he knows everything about. He befriends a teenage boy on the other side of the fence who is Japanese, when the boy loses his toy plane on Jim’s side. They help each other out, and this kinda skews Jim’s loyalties. There is another time when Jim sneaks over to see the planes, almost gets shot by a Japanese soldier, but when he sees the three pilots coming towards him he salutes the pilots out of admiration, it saves his life. This is a cinematic moment because sparks are flying in the background as an engineer is working on the planes, and there is smoke around the boy as he touches the planes. The pilots seem Godlike when Jim salutes them because it is in soft light and silhouette. No denying that this film was created by a master in the art of film. There’s a few notable ways of storytelling like when Jim’s Japanese friend dies towards the end of the film, and Jim tries to save him, but can't. For a flash Jim sees himself as the body, but as little Jaime. This pretty clearly expresses that Jim is mourning the loss of his childhood. But he learned the value of people over things and opulence in the end. Lastly he realizes that Basie is no good for him. Still, this scene kinda bugged me because Jim says over and over “I CAN SAVE EVERYBODY”. It was like 12 times. 1-2 times would have been fine. Although, Christian Bale as a kid actor was phenomenal! He hits all the right beats in his scenes, and takes major risks. He was already a pro at 12 or 13 yrs old. JMal is excellent as always, as the devious Basie, who’s moral compass is a little off but still cares for the kid. Ben Stiller is in it as a tough guy who is part of the American thieves. I am glad I watched it for the good performances, but probably would have enjoyed it more as a shorter version. It was so-so.

Bombshell - A review

“Bombshell” (2019)

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51t-y1nHDT8 Cast: Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie Bombshell recreates the events of 2015-2016 at Fox News during the 2016 election. The story focuses on Fox News Anchor Megyn Kelly, played (eerily, almost like a twin) by Charlize Theron, who also acts as the narrator of the tale. A subsequent story is the story of Gretchen Carlson, played by Nicole Kidman, a veteran news anchor who broke ground as one of the first female anchors fighting for space in the ‘Boys Club’ of Fox News. Both storylines are pulled from the news stories and ‘tweets’ of the day. The third tale focuses on Kayla, an ambitious, yet naive reporter seeking a spot as an on-air anchor. Kayla is a fictional character, however, her story is painfully true-to-life. The main villain in this true tale is Roger Ailes, the head television executive at the helm of Fox News, who has ties going back decades to the republican party. Megyn in her opening soliloquy goes so far as to say his hand has guided elections of Regan, Nixon, and many more. Roger is the self-proclaimed captain of the ship. Roger, played by John Lithgow, is one of the most powerful men in media, but also... a disgusting sexual predator. Things dust-up at the studios when two events happen simultaneously. Megyn, as star anchor, is tapped to be the presidential debate monitor, and someone mysteriously drugs Megyn’s coffee causing her to vomit. She pulls herself together and manages to throw some hardball questions at Trump. Trump later retaliates with a tweetstorm. At the same time Gretchen is getting tired of being called a “Skirt” on camera by the male anchors and being told that she is ‘sexy but too hard to work with’. She may be a former Miss America, but she is no fainting flower and tries fighting back. It fails and she is fired. She sues Roger for wrongful termination due to sexual harassment, and it gets kinda crazy from there. My favorite scene is of the other female anchors defending Roger Ailes in this wild chorus of women in 3-inch heels and tight shift dresses shouting into their phones ‘I wear pants! I wear pants! I can wear whatever I want!’ It is something you have to see. The last and most difficult tale to watch is Kayla’s story. She is so focused on her goal to be on air at the only network that matters, that she sadly falls victim to Roger’s sick manipulation. Margot Robbie plays her with a combination of ultra motivated, and sweet naivete. It is unnerving to watch. When she meets Roger in his private office, it’s like being on a razor’s edge, hoping she will walk out the door away from the slime, but she never does. When he asks to see her legs and then more, we see her fight back tears and can almost feel her violation. (shudder) All in all, for a lot of ladies who keep repeating the mantra “I’m not a feminist” like feminist is a dirty word, they do end up battling with the issues of equality for women and sexual harassment in the workplace. Megyn says more than once “ I’m not a feminist”. Yet her actions betray her. Despite her best attempts to ignore the misogyny around her, we come to conclude that she (gasp) just may be a feminist. At the very least, she’s someone who is fighting for equal rights of women in the workplace (um...feminist?) and wants sexual harassment of women to stop (cough - feminist!).

Classic film : 8 1/2 by Federico Fellini

Starring: Marcello Mastroianni,Claudia Cardinale, Anouk Aimée, Sandra Milo and others. I don’t think I ever applauded a movie while watching it at home alone…but I literally applauded this film. It was sooooo good. It is like a visual 3 course meal. It is a 3 ring circus. It is

about the futility of human existence, while at the same time highlighting each individual character in the most glorious of ways. Each character, no matter how brief their screen time gets a moment to be recognized. Each character has been placed meticulously in frame at the right moment for us to view. It looks nonsensical, but there is a reason we are looking at them at the moment we see them. It is like each person is their own little world, like a crystal globe that we look into to see their persona. This film is the epitome of magical realism -- it blends a fantasy world with some form or reality together with the fluidity of an impressionist’s paint brush. At the same time, it has plenty of storyline to hold on to. The black and white imagery is amazing. The contrasts are so stark, so the whites are really white, and the darks, (especially the lead’s costumes) really pop. The settings are so incredibly elegant and otherworldly. There are two settings that stand out as extremely stark, one being the tower that is being made for a film shoot, and the other being the bath house that all of the characters visit at the same time. The bath house is some form of purgatory, and that lines up with the main character’s sense of guilt, and perhaps his conflict with his Italian Catholic upbringing. The tower is the lead character’s looming fear that he will not be a success, which is emphasized by the fact that it remains unfinished throughout the film. The plot is secondary, but I will go over it. The symbolism tells a lot of the story, but would only remain as random symbols if it were not for the storyline. The basic story is that there is a film director, Guido Anselmi, who is on the verge of starting a new production. He has written the story, and the film opens with him meeting a writer/film critic to go over the details of the story. They are scheduled to meet in this ethereal kind of plaza, a place that blends modern tall structures with an ancient Roman circus place. It's in a round. The characters meet there often. Before the writer arrives, Guido lines up to get a glass of water from some women working a table at the front. He looks off to the side to see a vision of a beautiful woman. The sound gets very quiet, almost drops out, and the film follows her as she glides quickly barefoot across the plaza. She is one of the loveliest women I’ve seen on screen. You can tell she is the woman of his dreams, or some sort of signal of purity and virtue while also being very sensual. Then, just as she is about to hand the glass of water to him, she changes into a different woman, an older woman- a regular worker at the table. This, I found out much later, is Claudia. Claudia appears often throughout the film, in various white dresses, and she really doesn’t have a name until the very end of the film. She is a symbol, I believe, of Guido’s ideal woman. Guido is tackling a lot of issues, mainly centered around his relationships with women. Some of the relationships play out in reality, some are from his past, and some, like Claudia, are of his wishes. He also is struggling with a loss of his parents. They do not seem to be alive -- they drop in and out of scenes as a repeating motif. It looks like he loved them very much, but may have had some issues with them. Seems like he slightly disappointed his father, for some reason which is left unsaid. Guido also sees his mother- - and though one can tell that he loves her deeply, there are issues. The mother appears crying, often. The mother is a prominent scene where Guido as a little boy gets in trouble at his Catholic school, and Mama is crying about that - disappointed. His mother sometimes appears in sensual scenes, as if to observe with dismay at what her son is doing. One scene, Guido goes from kissing his wife, to kissing his mother romantically. Some guilt and shame issues there, I believe. It looks like he had a good childhood. As a little boy, he had a nurse along with his siblings to play with. His sister tells him ghost stories, and tells him of a chant to bring his dead uncle back to life. He obviously enjoyed his childhood, though the catholic upbringing made him feel guilty about his sexuality. Another scene of his childhood has to do with his sexuality. As a boy, his friends would find this older woman, Saraghina, to dance for them. Looks like Saraghina is in poverty, but her husky good looks has made her into a businesswoman of sorts. They pay her a few dollars and she dances a sexy dance for them. The film stays pretty mild, but there is enough sensuality to know what is going on. The boys are found out by the priests and are punished. I was laughing through the majority of this scene- - it is done well. Back in semi-reality, Guido is balancing a few women. One just really wants a part in his film, another is his lusty but sometimes confusing mistress Carla, and one is his wife. The wife, Luisa, played by Anouk Aimée, is barely seen until the last third of the film. Their relationship is very strained -- it starts off with them acting as if they are long lost friends, not a married couple. Later, it is explained that his wife is fully aware of his affairs, and though she may not know his current lover -- she easily spots the mistress in the plaza. Luisa is no idiot. In one dreamlike sequence, Guido portrays her as a washer woman, a servant --- who is praising him, whereas in reality, she is a much more complicated woman who wants his respect. The divide between them gets bigger when he basically uses what she says to him as material in his new film. When the actress playing “the wife” in the film repeats Luisa’s words and has her look, Luisa has had enough of his shenanigans and bows out. There is a wild scene in Guido’s imaginings of all of the women in his life in one room as a sort of harem. They at first are there to support him and his every whim, but when one of the women protests being sent upstairs because she is too “old” at 27, the sht hits the fan and they all turn on him. Oddly enough, Guido’s ideal woman Claudia never makes an appearance in this scene, perhaps symbolizing that she is unattainable. The other thing that is unattainable is Guido’s ability to make any decisions on the production of his film. This weighs heavy on him. I thought that Guido actually wanted the producers to leave him alone. Also, the writer/critic is HYPER CRITICAL of Guido’s concept, to the point that it is freezing Guido up. I enjoyed the scene where Guido imagines killing the critic, cause he was driving Guido crazy. He was driving me equally nuts -- I was like, let the guy think. (Maybe this is alluding to his own critical self) Another thing that is debilitating for Guido is his issues, emotionally, and it is affecting his work. I think he has depression. The ending is dramatic, shocking, and full of metaphors. Nothing is clear cut, it's absurdist, and intentionally bizarre. It is open ended and keeps one guessing. I think that Guido’s drastic choice leads him to finally be able to create his film, though it may not be set in reality. You have to see it to get what I mean. I highly recommend you see it, if you are interested in film and filmmaking.

14o8 (based off of Stephen King's story of same title)

1408 Starring John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson How can I express how much I enjoy this film? This psychological horror has so many turns and twists it makes your head spin. It has little nods to the horror king Alfred Hitchcock, with obvious Easter Eggs like “Psycho 1” written on the arm of the lead character Mike’s wetsuit in the beginning and end of the film to more subtle hints like Mike looking through the hotel window to see other people in the building across from him, in a voyeuristic film-noir style. The plot is based off of the short story by Stephen King, who is one of my personal favorite writers for horror and suspense, and arguably the most successful writer of the genre, with maybe Poe topping King. 14o8 is a terrifying journey through the lead character’s psyche as he confronts his own demons and dark secrets. The lead, Mike, is a writer who has had some success writing stories about haunted places. His books are well known and are practically travel guides for ghost hunters. Even though he is successful with the genre, he is jaded and believes none of it. It is just a good cash cow for him. Knowing Stephen King, the lead may have been based on autobiographical moments...especially when the writer meets fans and is told that they like his books, but his first book was his best one. I like the writer angle because the character Mike acts as if he knows it all and has seen and done it all, so when he crosses the threshold of room 14o8 he thinks it’s all a sham. This is a perfect set up for the hell he experiences …. Because he is totally underprepared and caught off guard. I can’t really go through all the details since it has so many twists, but some details I liked set the audience up to feel uneasy from the beginning. Like… 1408 itself, Mike figures out that it is a number problem: 1+4+0+8= 13. The unlucky number 13. Mike sits in a cafe and scoffs at the idea that the cursed hotel room is real, but it’s his job and someone in a postcard warned him not to go there, so… he sees it as a dare to go there. Then, he tries to book the room, for any date, and is told over the phone it is unavailable…. indefinitely. This ups the ante, and now he HAS to go to this room. He hops the plane from Cali to NY to go to this mysterious hotel, the Dolphin Hotel. Then, when he gets to the hotel, the room, we find out, is technically on the 13th floor that is labeled the 14th floor. Most hotels skip the number 13 when numbering floors. It is considered bad luck. So the room is the “13”th room on the 13th floor, but labeled something else, just to keep visitors from being alarmed or… too curious. Additionally, when Mike enters the lobby, everything has an odd historical feel to it. The lounge chairs seem way too old fashioned, even in a classy hotel. There is a woman, dressed all in white with a baby that will not stop crying, and the stroller she has is something out of the 1930s. It’s all very disturbing… then it gets worse from there. The hotel manager, played by Samuel L. Jackson does everything in his power to discourage Mike from spending the night in the hotel…. He tries to upgrade Mike’s room, then he goes for the scare factor by showing crime scene photos of all the murders, suicides, and suspicious deaths, or incidents that occurred in the room. Mike is relentless, and still wants to stay in 14o8. With one final warning, the manager says “Most people do not last more than one hour”. If it were me, I’d be like “can I take pictures of the room and stay somewhere else?”, but not Mike… he goes for it. He thinks there is nothing but a ploy to get more customers to the hotel. He is very wrong….the room starts playing games with him shortly after he arrives. The first few minutes nothing happens. But, when the radio started to play by itself, teasing Mike with “We’ve only just begun”, I knew shit was about to get weird. Most of what happens to Mike is more like torture than actual horror. It is the suspense that gets to him, and to the viewer. Then, there’s that thing in the air vent… I won't tell you if you want to see it, but it’s scary. I have seen this movie twice, once when it came out and today on DVD and all the jumpscares still work. I actually didn’t remember much because there is so much that happens in a short time in the film. The room itself creates an environment where Mike has to confront the bad stuff he has done in his life, and come to terms with it, if it doesn’t actually kill him first. Then, when the viewer is sufficiently on edge and confused, the film has a plot twist to make the viewer wonder… what really was real and what was in his mind? To me, that’s suspense, because it leaves the audience to wonder… What is perception? What is reality? We all eventually need to face our dark side, and stuff we’ve gotten wrong…. And 14o8 makes the audience think about what we need to get right before it’s too late.