Mortuary

With so many names who grew up on B-movies end up making movies themselves, it's little surprise that such titles would inspire their own work. Be it cheeky homages or full-on dedications, what were initially written off as cheap productions have had a more lasting impression than intended. And none more so than horror pictures.

Howard Avedis' Mortuary certainly plays up the various elements found in B-movies. It's admittedly self-aware in its cheapness, which is more than can be said about other titles from the same time. That said, it's clear that said belt-tightening affected the quality of the overall script. (Honestly, a student film is better written than this.)

Being released in the shadow of titles like Suspiria and Halloween (ironically, both of which were blatantly cribbed here), Mortuary feels completely lackluster in comparison. It's not just about depicting decent scares; it's about building suspense for the scares. That's key to horror.

If there's one redeeming aspect of Mortuary, it's that it features Bill Paxton early in his career. Being one of the few actors who elevated a movie's quality from his presence, it's clear that Paxton approached the script differently than his co-stars. Regardless, movies lost something when he died in 2017.

Mortuary is very much lacking in its many moving parts. With a barely cohesive script, it's the kind of picture that a new-on-the-scene actor typically does so they can make rent. Still, Paxton just barely saves it from complete unwatchability. Faint praise, yes, but it's all it earns.

My Rating: ***

At Close Range

Fact is often stranger than fiction. It's why people are so drawn to true crime, and why Hollywood practically drools over the potential money it'll make. And it shows how the most unexpected people will do the most unexpected things.

Take, for instance, one Bruce Johnston, Sr. He and his gang of thieves -- some were his own family members -- terrorized Chester and Lancaster Counties in Pennsylvania for years before his criminal empire crumbled. A few years after Johnston and his crew were sent up the river, James Foley's At Close Range was released. Naturally, names were changed, but that doesn't make it any less unsettling.

What makes At Close Range stand out is that it's not set in some thriving metropolis (as most neo-noirs are) but rather the rural outskirts of it. The sweeping farmlands and small storefronts provide a stark contrast to the neon lights and tall buildings. After all, more secrets can be hidden when you know your neighbors.

But in watching At Close Range, it becomes bittersweet in seeing what became of Foley's career. Between the success of this and Glengarry Glen Ross six years later, it looked like everything would be in his favor. But as is the case with any promising career in Hollywood, it didn't pan out that way. (Sure, he had success with television but his more recent film entries are...eesh.)

At Close Range is an understated work on the strength of family ties. With strong work from Sean Penn and Christopher Walken, it depicts the poisonous grasp sometimes found within a family. Blood may be thicker than water but in this instance, it spills just as easily.

My Rating: ****1/2

Spontaneous Combustion

Tobe Hooper has always been something of an anomaly within Hollywood. After hitting it big with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, he never seemed to reach the same heights afterward. (Even the success of Poltergeist continues to be overshadowed by rumors that Steven Spielberg actually directed it.) Though he shifted to television soon after, that's not to discredit his film work completely.

Now Spontaneous Combustion is hardly top-tier material from Hooper (or from anyone involved in this, really), but it still gets the job done. But boy, even then it's tough to get through at times. (Oh, the plights of late '80s-early '90s horror flicks.)

That's not to say Spontaneous Combustion is completely terrible, far from it. Hooper had a good idea for his picture, make no mistake; the problem is that everything around it stumbles at the starting gate. (Honestly, most of the actors oversell the half-hearted dialogue.)

Of course, there is one shining grace to Spontaneous Combustion: its star, Brad Dourif. Being the kind of actor who knows how to work with what he's given, he elevates the otherwise lackluster title. Though one has to wonder how much of a role Child's Play had on his casting here...

Spontaneous Combustion is by no means a masterpiece both Hooper and Dourif make it mostly tolerable. Though in watching this, it makes one think a retrospective on Hooper is due. Sure, there were some following his death in 2017, but there could stand to be a few more...even if a lot of his output fell flat.

My Rating: ***

BOOK VS MOVIE: Housekeeping

As one goes through life, very rarely is it in their favor. Close connections crumble, hopes and dreams don't come to fruition, and happiness and disappointment often go hand in hand. That all being said, that doesn't generally mean life is boring and predictable.

If anything, life is what you make of it. And the people you encounter are the ones who help shape it (for better or for worse). Be it family and friends or complete strangers, how they interact with you and make you see the world around you leave a lasting impact, good or bad. But this always depends on the person in question.

Marilynne Robinson's Housekeeping follows such a scenario. Under the care of their eccentric aunt, two girls grow up differently in a remote town. Robinson weaves a tale of loneliness amid family ties, how your own blood can be a complete stranger. But she also shows how one has a hunger for individuality, that drive for independence. (Everybody wants to be somebody.)

Bill Forsyth's adaptation follows Robinson's novel practically to the letter. (Forsyth said he made the film to get people to read the book.) Similar to his earlier film Local Hero, Forsyth depicts a lingering pathos within its frames. Even something so open can feel so lonely.

So which is worth checking out? Robinson has a poetry in her words while Forsyth sings with his images. Both tell the story in their own way but very similarly as well. It's a simple tale, yes, but they convey it beautifully.

What's worth checking out?: Both.