This is my second attempt at writing this update. For the second time this week Ecto, the programme I use to update my blog, has crashed on me taking a post with it. So if anyone knows any blog software for Mac that isn't complete shit then I'd be most grateful. Either that or present me with the buttocks of Ecto's creator so that I can soundly thrash them with a tree branch.
Anyway, a slightly disappointing month for me this time. I think I chose my films quite badly and as a result was left with a number of films that could have been great but were in fact distinctly mediocre.
- Cut sleeve Boys - directed by Ray Yeung - Purportedly a look at the Anglo-Chinese gay community, this film takes on far too much as it tries to address issues as varied as whether or not to lead a transgendered lifestyle, what to do when you're pretty and start to get old and whether or not gay people can actually be monogamous. Instead of focussing on any one of these issues, Yeung tries to take them all on and reduces the entire film to a series of easy stereotypes that say little about being gay or anglo-chinese.
- Ages of Lulu - directed by Bigas Luna - The tale of a woman's sexual development ranging from adolescence to adulthood. Beautifully shot, this film starts well but quickly devolves into a melodramatic and misogynistic mess as its transgressive intentions give way to a deeply reactionary set of views regarding female sexuality.
- House of Rock - directed by Stuart Evans - Unfairly overlooked British animated sitcom about a group of dead rock stars living in a house together in purgatory. Afflicted by what seems to be quite a tight budget and the odd joke that seems terribly dated, it nonetheless manages to be genuinely funny in quite a ramshackle and chaotic way.
- The Mark of Cain - directed by Mark Munden - A Channel 4 drama that generated some coverage when Channel 4 decided to push back its screening date lest this story of British torture in Iraq give the Iranians any ideas. This drama effectively wants to say that the military is institutionally prone to racism and thuggery but it ultimately lacks the courage to make the attack directly.
- Re-Animator - directed by Stuart Gordon - A classic 1980's splatterpunk adaptation of an H.P. Lovecraft short story. Completely potty and finally released here in its uncut form, this superb horror film crackles with a dark intelligence and humour that really shows what you can do with an intelligent script and an intelligent director.
This month's pick of the litter is easy, Re-Animator is a classic and I can't believe that I had managed not to see it up until now. Warmly recommended for all lovers of twisted imagery.
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