Review: Ten Minutes to Midnight

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Ten Minutes to Midnight
Directed by Erik Bloomquist
Mainframe Pictures; Jingai Films; Danse Macabre; MVD Visual
72 minutes, 2021
www.facebook.com/TenMinutesToMidnight
www.jingaifilms.com
www.MVDVisual.com

While zombie and body horror films are flooding the market right now, it’s nice to see another vampire flick pop up. And what better location than in West Central Connecticut, about 30 miles west of Hartford? Connecticut has some of the richest people in the Tri-State Area, so blood-sucking comes natural to the vicinity. Well, once again, and early on, I digress…

Caroline Williams

In the late night, just in time for her Midnight shift at a local radio station – and during a hurricane – retiring disc jockey Amy Marlowe (Caroline Williams, who has a history of horror films such as Rob Zombie’s Halloween II in 2009, 1986’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre II where she also played a DJ, and at least three films I have reviewed on this blog, Hanukkah, Verotika, and Abolition) has been bitten on the neck by a bat on her way to the studio. Oops! Perhaps another good name for this could have been Undead Air, I suppose.  

Her super-scuzzy boss, Robert (William Youmans) who was once her lover when she first started at that station thirty years before, has a new DJ and potential lover in Sienna (Nicole Kang, who is now Mary Hamilton on the series “Batwoman), who is to “shadow” the seasoned music spinner. Amy is not impressed, especially when Sienna chimes, “I grew up listening to you!” An aging Amy is a core feature of the storyline.

Also in the building is Amy’s multiple-pierced engineer, Aaron (Adam Weppler) and security, Ernie (Nicholas Tucci, d. 2020), who seems to be the comic relief – and rabies takes a week or more for symptoms to express themselves, not a couple of hours – but let us move on.

Nicholas Tucci and Nicole Kang

Being the last show before “retirement” from the studio to be replaced by the new, young thing (I mean that as an expression, not a comment on Sienna as a woman), what does an aging DJ have to lose as her anger explodes on-air, especially when transforming into a biter (man, I love the wide mouth chestnut that, if I remember correctly, started with Fright Night (1985).

As the vamp fever makes its way through Amy’s body, the story gets more interesting as she starts to hallucinate, along with doing something incredibly gross for the viewer (i.e., me). That’s a good thing, of course, to keep the – er – flow going. As time goes on, what is real and what is in Amy’s head becomes more and more questionable, which leads to a super interesting third act that I did not see coming, and is phenomenally imaginative.

This film is a fine mixture of ‘80s style and modern sensibilities, with a focus on the beginning and the end of careers in the arts. Some of it is quite accurate, but then again, some of it obviously is not (unless you believe in vampires, of course).

The flick is beautifully shot by Thomson Nguyen, with a lot of primary light coloring (red and blue, especially) to depict mood and process. There is no question the acting is actually quite fine considering the pedigree of the cast, and that’s always a bonus. But let it be known, this is solidly Williams’ film.

What is also nice is that the major cast is relatively small at about five, and the space is very tight and almost claustrophobic (the lighting helps with that). The station reminds me of the one with Wolfman Jack in American Graffiti (1975), with the relatively remote location and small area to cover.

There is a fine mix of SFX and CGI, with neither of them being overly dominant. The blood flows well without being excessive, as this is more story based (hence the occasionally longer than necessary dialogues in a couple of spots). However, the sporadic moments of violence come quite unexpectedly, so there are nice jump scares in that direction. And as I said before, there are a few skeevy scenes that may make one wince or turn away.

 

As for the specials on this Blu-ray, there are an abundant amount, starting with the full audio commentary with the director, the co-writer Carson Bloomquist, and the star, Caroline Williams, the latter of whom has some nice insights to the meaning of the film and especially her character, Amy. Nicely, they never talk over each other, and they tell the story of the filming, with ideas behind some of the action and anecdotes (such as William’s role was first offered to Barbara Crampton, who suggested Williams for the role). This is an ideal commentary, with everything that keeps it interesting.

Zoom interviews at the online Grimmfest 2020 Festival (29 minutes), with the cast and crew, is a bit crowded, but still fun and informative for those who are interested about the film on a deeper level, but with lots of good stories and humor. “CT Style Live,” Connecticut’s feel-good program, has a light “Go Connecticut” interview with the director and Williams (5 minutes) before the official release of the film. The world premiere introduction welcoming and request for reviews on IMB by the director is shown for The Popcorn Frights Film Festival (1 minute), from Southeast United States. Others include two Ten to Midnight trailers (teaser and regular), plus additional MVD coming attractions.

There was a glitch on my disc, so I could not watch the following Behind the Scenes featurettes: “Take One,” “ “Immortality,” “Love Stories,” “Memory Play,” and finally footage from the TMTM at Grimmoire Academy Halloween Carnival.

The film itself is a solid entry into the vampire genre, and the reliance on story more than gore – even with the gross-out moments – makes this worth the watch.

Review: Ringmaster

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Ringmaster (aka Finale)
Directed by Søren Juul Petersen
Frightgeist Films; Jingai Films; Danse Macabre; MVD Visual
100 minutes, 2019 / 2021
www.jingaifilms.com
www.MVDVisual.com

I realize it is a gross generalization, but people in Denmark are known for being "happy." Perhaps that is because they watch horror films? Or possibly because they make them? Well, in this case the latter is definitely true, as it is mostly in Danish with English and German, and has English subtitles for all languages. It is based on a novella by Danish writer Steen Langstrup.

With finger firmly beside nose, in the opening – which I am sure will be mentioned in numerous reviews of those familiar with older films of terror – a man comes from behind a movie theater curtain, and gives almost the same speech that opened up Frankenstein (1931; original speech HERE), with some particulars in the center changed. This said to me, okay, we are off to a good start. 

After a prologue which is actually from later in the story and then continues interspersed throughout, we learn that most of the body of the film is a flashback until it eventually catches up. We are introduced to our two female leads that are working the late shift at a gas station/convenience store (which most are these days) where there are few customers because of the big final game in which Demark is in the finals (I am guessing soccer/football). This means every person who drops by the station is under suspicion by the audience because, well, it is a genre film, giving the viewer some possibly juicy red herrings, though honestly, if one pays attention, it not hard to figure out who the Ringmaster is in the early story. But more on the Ringmaster later.

Karin Michelson and Anne Bergfeld

There is Agnes Burger (Anne Bergfeld), who is the daughter of the gas station owner, and trying to finish her Psychology thesis in the back room. She is in a somewhat stable relationship, and Belinda (Karin Michelson), a working-class woman trying to get by – who uses a flip phone that only texts – and has a tumultuous relationship with a man of a questionable background. The women are mostly bored through the first 15 minutes or so, but their personal dynamics, as they have such different backgrounds and personalities, keeps it interesting. You just know they are going to bond by the end, as is the formula for any film with contentious leads, genre or not. I can empathize because I used to work in a single-screen large movie palace in my teens, and I remember those dull, slow nights, where I was assigned to stay inside the theatre proper, watching a film I had seen 50 times or so, and no one to check on in the seats. But, I digress…

While Agnes’s boyfriend, Benjamin (Kristoffer Fabricius) is off at the game (I don’t understand sports devotion when there are so many genre films still left to see), Belinda’s boyfriend, Kenny (Mads Kadoul), shows up and gives us good reason as to why Belinda’s mom is not a fan. He looks like he just stepped out of a MAGA rally in Mississippi, and is a complete macho moron.

At 30-minutes in, I started talking to the screen because these two women, with suspicious characters all around, just do not call the police. This is one of those infamous people in genre films making bad decisions moments that drives me crazy. If that was me, in real life, I would have 911-ed without thinking twice. Here, Agnes is a spoiled girl with rich parents, and it appears, a narre (fool), notwithstanding her higher education. If I was working with the boss’s daughter, I would insist we lock up and go home early on; considering there are so few customers, it won’t make a hoot of difference. Irriterende. Both these women make incredibly poor choices throughout.

Damon Younger

The Ringmaster (Damon Younger), who is the center of the fate of many of the characters here, is just the pointman or emcee for a group of both men and women viewers in plain white masks, as he tells Agnes, “It’s only show biz.” He is in creepy whiteface (and hands), reminding me of the Joel Grey character in Cabaret (1972). He presents a snuff game show on the dark web called Escapismus (Escapism) that borders on Hostel (2005) territory.

Despite the outdated phones, television and CCTV technology is prominent here, be it the CCTV at the gas bar, a video camera held by a customer (with a mention of YouTube), and the wall cameras used by the Ringmaster to film his prey being brutalized. I also found it interesting the juxtaposition between the tension in the early gas station scenes, and the physical violence in the interspersed and later events. Another difference is that with later ones, there is a lot of extreme close-ups used to differentiate the mood of the flashbacks and the current. As the film progresses, the new story is intermingled more often, Usually starting with a close-up of a camera lens.

The cruelty, which of course is the point, is honestly sometimes hard to watch, but it is important to think about the voyeurism of the Web; nothing sells like violent pranks and accidents; I blame the worldwide acceptance of such actions on “American’s Funniest Home Videos” and moronic shows like “Jackass.”

The extras are minimal, just caption options, chapters and three trailers (though not for this film).

Despite my quibbling about some actions taken by the women and their boyfriends, whether it is written by Petersen or Langstrup, the build-up and consistency and-yet juxtaposition of the tension and violence, still works, especially if you enjoy talking to your screen, which I do (only at home). The film is well put together, the gore and violence are graphic, and it is a intriguing-yet-disturbing ride from beginning to end.

Review: Closed Circuit Extreme

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

Closed Circuit Extreme

Written and directed by Giorgio Amato
Jingai Films / Dania Films / Manetti Bros Films
98 minutes, 2012 / 2014
www.mvdvisual.com

At last, a new found footage film! Haven’t seen one of those in… okay, enough with the sarcasm.

Closed Circuit Extreme is an Italian film shot in English with thick accents (though I had no problem understanding the dialog). Its premise is simple, if not overly logical.

A man, David de Santis (Stefano Fregni) – as in “David of Satan” – is suspected by a college age couple of being a serial killer, and of doing in one of their friends. In order to trap this guy, they repeatedly break into his house and set up a series of five CCTV cameras throughout, and then daily downloading the footage (at his house…guess they don’t have Wi-Fi in Italy, ahem) while he’s at work.

This is a disagreeable couple. Daniele (Guglielmo Favilla) knows the danger they are in, and Claudia (Francesca Cuttica) randomly touches and moves stuff, looks through David’s drawers, all the while he’s yelling at her to stop. For once I agree with the man in the story. Usually it’s the women who are more even-headed. She seems pretty non-pulsed that they are in the house of someone they believe has killed their amica.

The entire film is edited from the CCTV images, which keep cutting in and out and filled with repeated and annoying static noise. This is, I am assuming, to remind the viewer that it is the CCTV they are watching, like anyone needs any hints.

For more than half the movie, we watch the possibly dangerous man as the eats in front on the television, naps on his couch, and goes to sleep in his bed. Truly the banality of evil, you might say.

Sporadically, he interviews possible nannies for a child you never see, for him and a wife you never see, and obviously neither exists. It’s well into the second half of the film when you see David of the Devil for who he really is. His brutality is shown in detail, with some nice physical effects thrown in, though nothing really comes as any surprise.

Part of the reason there is no bombshell is what the failing of the storyline is to me: this is “police evidence,” so as we meet the characters there is an on-screen blurb that tells you the name of the person, where they are from, and the date they die (or not). This takes away much of the suspense, leaving just the killings (etc.). Oh, this person dies. Oh, this one doesn’t die, we learn on the introduction of everyone. Sigh.

The scenes of brutality are few and far between, and the body count on screen is pretty low. There is little gore per se, though we see a lot of blood on clothes and body parts. In fact, this film could have been an hour and it would have been enough.

The extra is the trailer, but what I find confusing, is after the film between minutes of black nothing, we see some silent clips of the film we just saw. Che cosa?

The way in which the film is successful is that it really does show that evil is just moments. Okay, here is a bizarre analogy, so bear with me. When you get a year-end letter, where you read the exploits of someone you know, it seems like the year was filled will events (e.g., “We went on vacation!” “I got a promotion!”), when actually, most of the period was probably mundane and ordinary, when you fill in the gaps. This film attempts and succeeds in showing that kind of “between” moments, which makes the contrast of violence seem more shocking.

Where it doesn’t succeed is, as I said, in TMI by broadcasting outcomes upon introductions.

Reviews: Iron Doors

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films Blog, 2013
Images from the Internet

                            

Iron Doors

Directed by Stephen Manuel
MVD Visual
Jingai
80 minutes, 2010 / 2013
www.MVDvisual.com

This film has won numerous awards in the festival circuit, including best picture, best actor and best cinematography. It left me with more questions than answers.

Before you read further, know that the whole film is available for free, linked below the trailer at the bottom of this review. While I won’t give away any endings or major plot secrets, there will be minor spoiler alerts throughout. Okay? Then let’s continue.

 

An unnamed investment banker, played at full emotion by German actor Axel Wedekind, wakes up in a locked vault with nothing but a dead, maggoty rat, and a locked locker that looks like it could have come from any gym or high school. At first he thinks someone is playing a practical joke, but comes to realize that there is more going on than that. What he faces is, well, survival.

In a way I won’t divulge, he pairs up with the only other person in the story, an unnamed African woman (Rungano Nyoni, who also writes and directs films) who disappeared from her own country, waking up inside a coffin for some reason. So, the two of them have to figure out the puzzle together.

This is obviously some kind of game. In fact, this film is curiously like two others, one being Saw (2004), and the other is the way underrated Cube (1997), but without the gore, though with a few disturbing scenes.

As these two struggle to find a way out, themselves and unbelievably, each other (a sex scene, after 4 days of no food, really?), the thought occurred to me, I don’t care. There is no context for the two of them, their lives before, or anything else. Surely, that is the reason, because the story wants you to see them from scratch, I get that. It’s also why I am so ambivalent. He basically rants and raves a lot, with enough “fucks” thrown in to make David Mamet happy. She just goes from scared to totally calm pretty damn fast.

More than once – make that often – I was tempted to reach for the fast forward. That I didn’t is amazing. It’s not because I couldn’t stand the apprehension, but rather it was more of “get on with it already.” Supposedly there is a claustrophobic element because they’re locked in a vault for the whole time, but I felt much more of that in the first Saw and Cube than here.

While I liked her more than him, her expectation of him as a man to take care of her (no, you chisel, I’m too delicate and precious for that) irked the crap outta me, quite honestly. In Africa, a place of every-day desperation and a high death rate, I cannot believe she wouldn’t just swing that hammer like John Henry, rather than the light tap-tap-tap. This was obviously written and directed by a man, steeped in masculinist beliefs, who has no concept of what women are capable of doing.

And this may be picky, but we see that they pee, but don’t they have to take a dump, at some point, as well? I mean, I don’t need to see it, but if you’re gonna indicate bodily elimination, some discussion may be necessary in that department as well, especially since there are two strangers sharing this space.

As for the conclusion, well, hunh?

This would have been a good chance for a commentary track, but the only extra is the trailer.  The original film was in 3D, which seems odd to me, in the same way some radio news stations (e.g., New York’s excellent 1010WINS) brag about the channel being in both stereo and HD. It’s just talk, so why bother? The DVD (at least my version) is straight 2D, but my opinion would not change if it were one more dimension.