Drag Me To Hell
“Drag Me to Hell” is a true bubble gum horror movie — safe, vapid, fun and uniquely American. It was of course directed by Sam Raimi, whose name became synonymous with horror once “Evil Dead 2” was released in the mid-1980s. Even though he hadn’t made any horror since the third entry in his “Evil Dead” series, Raimi has always been considered a master of the horror film, despite his going off and directing mainstream pictures like “The Gift” and “Spiderman.”
So it was with great anticipation that his return to the genre hit cineplexes in the summer of 2009. No one quite expected bubble gum. But that’s what Raimi delivered. The film opens pretty strong, with a young Mexican boy being literally dragged to hell by demons. His crime: stealing a silver medallion from the wrong gypsy witch.
It becomes clear the deeper we go into the film that “Drag Me to Hell” is directly inspired by the much better 1950s horror film “Curse of the Demon”. Like Dana Andrew’s skeptic in that film, in Sam Raimi’s 2009 adaptation, a loan officer (Lohman) is confronted with a demonic curse that threatens to send her to hell. While “Curse” had an Aleister Crowley-like warlock making the curse, this film has a foreclosed witch cursing the loan officer who won’t give her a break. Raimi gets plenty of gross-out mileage from the gypsy witch (Lorna Raver), who wears dentures that she frequently removes and eventually morphs into a sucking, toothless, granny ghost. We are also able to instantly identify with Lohman’s working class loan officer, who is just trying to make a living for herself and impress her professor boyfriend, only to wind up cursed. As in “Curse of the Demon,” the curse leads to bizarre visions and crazy behavior from the target, who must give an article back to the person that cursed her (in “Demon” the article was a parchment, in this film it’s a button) if she has any hope of surviving.
Unlike “Curse,” this film has a wicked twist ending. “Drag Me to Hell” makes enough nods to the “Evil Dead” films to please Raimi’s horror fans — and has enough gee-wiz Americana to satisfy fans of Raimi’s “Spiderman” films. It feels a bit like a cross between a “Spiderman” movie and an “Evil Dead” comedy. One gets the sense that the main character may have even been written for Kristen Dunst. Actually, Ellen Page was originally announced as the star of this film, before dropping out for “scheduling reasons” and being replaced by Lohman. With Page, the film probably would have been a box office hit, as Lohman just doesn’t have quite the charisma to draw crowds for a PG-13 movie like this.
“Drag Me to Hell” feels like an extended episode of “Masters of Horror” — a good episode at that. But it just ain’t a horror classic, something you’d expect coming from a guy like Sam Raimi. What may be worse is the fact that the film had a PG-13 rating, when Raimi knew his old-school horror fans would have preferred R. Ironically, the film’s rating may have actually hurt it as the box office — and proven that the PG-13 horror trend was coming to a well-deserved end. Despite its flaws, “Drag Me to Hell” is an effective little horror movie. It also brought Apple spokesperson Justin Long back to the genre. Many of us still remember his last horror appearance: “Jeepers Creepers” nearly a decade ago.
Public Enemies
It’s no secret how the life of John Dillinger came to an end; so when Michael Mann begins his telling of the Dillinger story in 1933 only allowing for just over a year’s worth of story to be told he isn’t giving himself a lot of time. However, in a matter of only a few scenes Mann establishes his lead as a calculated and loyal criminal capable of breaking his friends out of jail, but unwilling to lose one along the way — that is unless you are the man upon which Dillinger places blame. Here is our hero, or anti-hero as it is, and Johnny Depp plays him with an accomplished steely gaze. It’s a low-key performance surrounded by menace, desire and love, but at the same time this film won’t be for everyone as its slow pace and attention to detail are sure to bore many while enthralling others.
Public Enemies is based on the Bryan Burrough’s book of the same name and while filled with prison breaks, bank heists and a recreation of the shootout at Little Bohemia Lodge that rivals the classic gun battle Mann staged in the streets of downtown Los Angeles in Heat, this film is hardly an action epic. This film is a classical epic. It’s a period piece in every sense of the word, so much so the final moments while we watch Dillinger sit in the Biography theater taking in Manhattan Melodrama the only difference between the classic Clark Gable and William Powell feature is that it is in black-and-white while Public Enemies is drenched in high-definition color.
I would best describe this film as following a similar structure to Mann’sHeat, while carrying the pacing of David Fincher’s Zodiac. Public Enemies contains plenty of gunfire, but action is not on sale here as much as Mann is determined to dig into Dillinger and what makes him tick, even though it appears it may be an impossible task.
At one point Dillinger introduces himself to his soon-to-be love interest, Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard), and tells her, “I rob banks.” She is startled by the statement, and rightly so, but that’s just who he is and he isn’t one for dancing around the facts. Dillinger’s a bank robber living in the now with no thought of tomorrow, and that’s just the way he likes it.
Of course, things change as J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) commissions famous law man Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) to take charge of the FBI’s Chicago office and begin the manhunt for Dillinger. Bale plays Purvis with a dogged dedication to his job, a dedication that appears to overwhelm him at times, yet his ability to assess a situation never seems compromised. Both Bale and Depp are extraordinary in their performances, but in such a way that neither ever takes it too far and both thankfully stay clear of old-fashioned gangster stereotypes.
Depp never goes for the gangster role made popular by 1930s Hollywood and Bale doesn’t take his character’s dedication to catching Dillinger so far it becomes overcooked, something we certainly saw Bale do in Terminator Salvation. However, while Bale and Depp deliver, the true showstopper is Marion Cotillard playing Billie, a hatcheck girl that catches Dillinger’s eye and understandably he never wants to take it off her.
As much as Public Enemies is a film about a man who robs banks it is also about a man who seems to be on the verge of realizing there is more to life, but never quite gets a handle on it and it actually begins early on. A “staring into the eyes of death” theme seems to run through this film from start to finish as Dillinger deals with it in the film’s opening scene and Purvis encounters it throughout, in what seems like a calculated attempt by Mann to link the two foes.
Dillinger’s forward-thinking continues in his relationship (if you can call it that) with Billie, neither of them having any real direction in life, and the combination of her naivete and his dedication create an interesting, although not fully satisfying, pairing. As Billie, Cotillard is absolutely ravishing. Mann gives her wide-eyes and soft skin the treatment of a Hollywood goddess and she chews up every scene, but the beauty of this film doesn’t stop there.
Considering the release date and star power of Public Enemies you would think this was a summer tentpole feature, but to call it anything other than an art house period piece would be to mislabel it. Along with cinematographer Dante Spinotti, Mann manages to make the 1930s look like a version of the ’30s the cinema has never shown you before. Through the use of high-definition cameras Mann actually brings the ’30s into the Ought and the realism may set some back on their heels. It’s a striking visual presentation and it makes the scenery as much a part of the movie as the actors living in it.
With all of this said you would expect me to come away with a final paragraph slathering additional adjectives to describe the emotions I came out of the film with. However, this wasn’t an easy film for me to digest and it is one I will be returning to during its opening weekend as I was upset there wasn’t a second screening I could attend before writing this review.
Mann’s dedication to Dillinger’s lack of foresight throws me for a loop as it sometimes stalls the progress of the film, but I believe that was the point. Dillinger robs banks. That’s what he does and there isn’t much more he is looking for. He’s a loyal, yet ruthless, character filled with hatred, but his hatred isn’t for the people, it’s for the institutions. While robbing a bank Depp uses a similar line, “We’re not here for your money sir, we’re here for the bank’s money.” There is a method to his lawlessness and it earned him some level of respect with the public, but doesn’t make for a narrative that’s easy to instantly embrace. I am leaving room for this one to grow on me or slowly settle down to the middle, but one thing’s for certain, it had my wheels spinning and may likely end up an all-time classic of mine a few years down the line.
Relative links
http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/movie/public-enemies
http://www.publicenemies.net
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1152836/
I Love you, Beth Cooper
Let’s start this review off right. I Love You, Beth Cooper is the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen of comedies. If you’ve read my Revenge of the Fallen review then you’re well aware that I don’t mean that as a compliment. With all the controversy surrounding Bruno, I pose this question to you the viewer; what’s more offensive? A comedy that shocks audiences into laughter or a comedy that stuns audiences into coma? Truth be told, I Love You, Beth Cooper has a few scattershot laughs, but overall, it’s a bust.
In I Love You, Beth Cooper, unpopular valedictorian Denis Cooverman (Paul Rust) professes his love to high school hottie Beth Cooper (Hayden Panettiere) as part of his epic graduation speech. Problem is, Beth doesn’t even know Denis exists. In addition to making this awkward proclamation, Denis also proceeds to bring to light privileged information regarding other students on campus. It’s all part of his newly adopted “say what you feel before its too late” philosophy. To his great amazement, Denis is shocked to discover that Beth finds his admission cute. So cute in fact, that she and her popular girlfriends (Lauren London and Lauren Storm) decide to make an appearance at Denis’ graduation party. What follows is a convoluted mess of a movie that finds Denis butting heads with a few of his hostile classmates and unexpectedly joining forces with a few others. All these things are done in order to impress the girl of his dreams. A girl he doesn’t even know.
I Love You, Beth Cooper was directed by Chris Columbus and written by Larry Doyle (based on his own novel) and it attempts to put the audience in a sort of hyper reality/dreamlike state that might remind one of Better Off Dead, License to Drive, or Weird Science. In fact, since I mentioned Weird Science as an influence, I might as well tell it like it really is; I Love You, Beth Cooper is a sad carbon copy of all things John Hughes (Ferris Bueller’s Alan Ruck even shows up as Denis’ unbelievably understanding father). The big difference between Hughes’s films and this movie, is that most of Hughes’ works (the critically panned Weird Science included – I love that movie!) were witty, energetic, funny, and, for the most part, sincere. I Love You, Beth Cooper isn’t any of those things. It can’t even capture a fraction of the heart found in Superbad or a hint of the edge and cleverness so prominent in Mean Girls and Heathers (other noteworthy films this movie seems to be emulating).
This movie really is a train wreck. Unfortunate, because the set up suggests that perhaps something fun might transpire. Sadly, nothing really does. Who to blame? The cast? The director? Writer? All of the above? I think it starts with the story.
Panettiere is gorgeous and Heroes proves that she’s much more than a pretty face, but I’m convinced that every time she was on screen in this movie, Michael Bay was brought in to call the shots. Her Beth Cooper isn’t really a character. She’s treated more like a piece of meat. She’s essentially Megan Fox in Transformers only with a tad more emotion. The superficial screenplay never really allows her to be anything more than a sex object. Rust has a terrific look for this picture, but he’s asked to completely overplay the proceedings. The dumb jokes, the facial tricks, the super hero themed underwear. Everything is simply overdone. A shame too because a few moments near the end of the picture suggest that Rust has some chops, but in the end, we never really get to see what this kid is made of because, as is the case with Beth, his Denis isn’t really a character either.
A Top 35 list with the torrent sites of 2009
Bitsoup is gaining more and more notoriety amongst Peer to Peer users. They are also a private community, so you will need to sign up to participate in their swarm.
Btscene.com is the best torrent site out there, with possibly the largest torrents database.
Isohunt.com Isohunt’s webmaster is now counter-suing the music industry from Canada. He claims that previous suits regarding copyright violation were unfounded and, furthermore, he claims he is entitled to get his legal expenses covered. The whole story can be read at their website.
Demonoid.com is finally back online! After some legal trouble in April, 2008, they have moved their headquarters outside USA and have resumed their operations. It is still a private community, with members being responsible for any irregularities their invited friends cause in this community. If you get your hands on a Demonoid membership, be careful who you invite, or you might lose your own.
Torrentz.com they index torrents found on many trustworthy sites.
The Pirate Bay attracts many of the Peer to Peer enthusiasts.
YouTorrent.com is still in beta testing. Their aim is to become the largest *legal* torrent site. They are still way smaller than “pirate” sites, but they are worth a visit.
Torrentscan.com is pretty interesting. It’s a “meta search” engine, basically an engine that searches for results using other search engines.
BiteNova (formerly known as “Bi-Torrents”, this one is a free Torrent site that has a fast searching format and a spartan look).
Mininova.org Mininova is basically the new Suprnova, one of the first torrent databases on the Web.
Torrentbox.com just like the case of Isohunt, Torrentbox has been filed a lawsuit by the MPAA. The days left for this search engine will not be many.
BTjunkie
Torrentreactor.to is the comeback from torrentreactor.com. They have passed their hijacking and the troubles with their hosting service. They are now located in Tonga. Details can be read on their webpage.
Torrentspy.com – recently closed, on 24th March, 2008: “Torrentspy has voluntarily closed its doors. Instead of conforming to the American court mandates to change their privacy policies, the Torrentspy team has opted instead to cease operations”.
Snarf It! they are currently down, looking for a new hosting deal.
ByTorrents Meta Search(recently brought down by hackers)
Thinktorrent.com (offline)
Scrapetorrent.com a new meta-. gaining notoriety
bittorrent.com (the official Torrent website by Bram Cohen, the designer of the Python BitTorrent format.)
Fenopy (formerly Bitoogle.com) (the ‘original’ bittorrent search engine)
BTbot.com (this site is slowly going down as well. It is currently indexing fewer and fewer files because, rumor has it, its administrator has been spooked by the avalanche of lawsuits against Isohunt and piratebay).
Special mention: Torrents.co.uk British site.
A Special mention is : LokiTorrent.com shut down on Feb 10, 2005 after a lawsuit with MPAA.
Commonbits.com the search site contains media on political content: video, audio, reports, transcripts, photos as well as other files. This is the place for activists sharing their message and also for people to learn about political choices. Sadly, its owners were forced to move it due to financial/legal pressures. Numerous people are hoping to see it back soon.
My yahoo visitors
Kikikourosava's Blog 