Movie Review: Saw III

Ah. October. When you think of October a few things spring to mind: Fall's coming, so is The Great Pumpkin and it's going to be Halloween soon, so that must mean a new Saw. For the third year in a row, Saw has seen a Halloween release date. The third installment in this horror franchise has come out fast and furiously a year later, and it's probably the best horror movie I've seen in theaters all year. Well perhaps because I didn't get a chance to see The Decent. I digress. On to the review....

So right about now I know what you're saying, you still don't know how they did this after you saw Jigsaw die in part 2, well apparently he didn't. Just passed out. So Saw 3 opens with the serial killer, Jigsaw, and his protégé, Amanda, are continuing their quest to teach ungrateful people to appreciate their lives by putting them though seriously fucked up situations. However, Jigsaw’s brain tumor has taken a turn for the worse, giving him only days left to live, or even less. Amanda kidnaps a surgeon and attaches a deadly collar to her neck. The surgeon’s game is simple: keep Jigsaw alive until the end of one of his latest tests which is going on simultaneously. If she can accomplish this, she will leave with her life. Meanwhile, a man whose life was ruined after the death of his son is put through a series of challenges, each relating to his own personal desires for vengeance. However, nothing is ever quite as it seems with Jigsaw.

However, be warned, this movie is story heavy. Not like the other installments. This movie is completely about John and Amanda's relationship. It's equipped with retconned flashbacks from the very first movie, tying everything together to be a very cohesive movie franchise. You get your moments of core, but they're very fast and flighty even. Most of the time, the writers spend distinguishing how different Amanda's style is compared to John's. She's more sadastic and doesn't give you a way out, which is odd considering if he didn't, she wouldn't be alive to continue his work. Amanda's got her work cut out for her and without the police chasing her, because she clearly did away with the only cops working the Jigsaw case, there's no one left in her way. No one except John. Like I said, this movie focuses on those two characters alot. It was like a therapy session between a psycho-fuck father and daughter team.

Don't get me wrong, I love the concept of the Saw films. The whole “sadistic torture with a life lesson” concept is different and somewhat refreshing to the genre, gives a horror movie some heart, if that can be accomplished. It's also very reminiscent of the days when Paramount would release a new Friday the 13th film every year, and other studios with slasher franchises would follow suit. Thankfully, the Saw franchsie has remained consistently good for three movies straight, like Scream did when it was released. So a Halloween without a Saw now would be awful.

What I really like about these movies is that these films all flow together beautifully. I've said this before, but this installment shed more light on the background of the first and second films. A good portion of the film is spent focusing on Amanda’s history and how she came to consider Jigsaw her mentor and backstory presented in flashbacks from previous installments, which is a welcomed bit of depth, as it works to clear up any “what the fuck" questions people might have left over from the previous installment. However, this also might push people away from the franchise, because it's too heavy handed with story. Also the side story had too much screen time devoted to the man going through his challenges and the surgeon taking care of Jigsaw is rather unbalanced. At points in the movie, they spend so much time solely on the surgeon’s story you almost forget there’s a guy out there being horrifically tortured. The twist at the end also felt like a bit of a let-down after the shocker from Saw II, or even the one from the first film. It felt a bit too cut and dry, as I was able to predict it after a certain point in the film, where-as the twists from the last two films took me completely off-guard. Not to mention that the worst part of the movie was the trailer for the Hostel rip-off movie, Turistas.

However, the traps in this movie are just as brutal, ingenius and torturous as in any of the prior films. Saw III also lays on the gore much thicker than the other installments, getting away with a lot of nasty effects most R-rated films shy away from. The deaths in this movie are quite ugly, with lots of broken bones and self-inflicted wounds of the worst kind.

Saw III lives up to its expectations and is on par with the previous films. Unfortunatley, it’s probably my least favorite of the series, but by no means is it bad. It’ll still make you cringe and possibly turn your stomach with some of the depraved violence captured on film. Saw III is one to check out if you want to see a decent horror movie.

Movie Review: Texas Chainsaw Massacre The Beginning

A few years ago, there was a very, decent remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which starred Jessica Beil. Of all the remakes that's happened over the years, I honestly liked this one. It was stylish and a completely smarter version for a new generation of horror fans, which is speaking alot for the tripe they're coming up with these days. Now when they introduced a prequel to TCM, of course I said WTF?! And decided that I would be very skeptical of it.

So last friday, a few friends decided to go check it out. I tried to talk them into going to see The Marine, starring WWE Superstar, John Cena, but with all my effort, no one wanted to see it. So I sucked it up and headed to see The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, with an open mind. You hear me, an open mind.

As prequels go, they try to shed some light on the origin of main characters of a movie franchises. Our lives apparently wasn't complete unless we saw how Anakin turned to the Darkside and became Darth Vader or from what I hear they're going to finally show how Bilbo acquired The One Ring in The Hobbit, the prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy. So have you ever lied awake at night, tossing and turning, wondering how Leatherface exactly became Leatherface? Yeah, me neither. So why the fuck would anyone else? In this case, someone felt that we needed to know this crucial origin of a horror icon. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning aims to shed a little light on the tormented past and fragile psyche of film's most famous chainsaw-wielding madman. And it really didn't.

We learn that his nickname originates from a facial deformity, and that he mutilated himself and farm animals as a child before moving on to people. The director quickly does away with all this at the very beginning. Oh and the biggest thing we would want to know at the very least is why the chainsaw usage? We don't get an explaination for this. It just so happens to be sitting in the corner, of the slaughter house he was just fired from. He just picks it up and leaves. That's it. That's the big legend. Yes, he uses it later, but by that time the chainsaw has the same significance as baseball bat at a Mets game. It's just there to kill people and not some mythical weapon this crazed fucker seems to connect with a'la Freddy's glove, Jason's penchant for machetes, Pinhead's love of chains or Michael's love for large steak knives. As for the story, it's pretty basic, if not a carbon copy of the original instead of the remake a few years ago. You can still see similarities, which is sort of a mixed blessing. Two Vietnam-bound brothers and their girlfriends head on a road trip across Texas before they ship out. However, a horrific car crash brings Sheriff Hoyt to the scene, and the group is taken to the house of the cannibalistic Hewitt family and their murderous, nephew, Leatherface. Which is a name he was never really given or stated. The result is that TCM: The Beginning resembles a 70's splatter film in almost every aspect, from gore to its completely generic plot, which is a good thing, because tribute films are fun. It also means the film runs short, which is also good because if this movie was any longer than 83 minutes, it would have far overstayed its welcome.

Eventually, all of the good-looking young victims die, one by one, having been tied up and beaten before being sliced apart by Leatherface. Jordanna Brewster, as the heroine with the best shot at escaping, looks pretty in her hip-huggers and halter top, even when she's covered in blood, but she's just not feisty enough. She tries to be, but you don't buy it. There's nothing there -- and you want a little extra sass in your horror movie babes, right? Then again, what happens to her and her friends is irrelevant, since the killers are the focus here, and we know they're going to survive anyway. It's a prequel, duh. We kinda loose that feeling through the flick. And so there's no suspense, no fear, just an endless stream of blood and the roar of the chainsaw ringing in your ears and the eventuality that no one is going to survive this, because the Hewitt family didn't get caught until 1973.

What I did find out that it's easy for your mind to wander while watching the film, because alot of it is redunant. So any hope of originality is pretty much shot to hell. Don't expect something fresh or even scary. In fact, this film wasn't able to succeed in terrifying the group of six-year-old kids sitting a few rows down from us, which is kind of pathetic. Most of the people in the audience laughed at death scenes or stupid fucked up circumstance beahvior often exhibited in these type of films. People jumped occassionally to the loud tonal-punches of sounds at wierd moments, which I am starting to hate in the horror genre. The music is scarier then the film at times, so they up the gore factor, when there's nothing else.

One thing I did like was that it looked great -- very authentic to the low-budget aesthetic of Tobe Hooper's classic original, with its low, off-kilter camera angles and faded earth tones, as if it were made in 1969, the year it takes place. We get the obligatory chainsaw foot-chase scenes, a torture sequence, several unnecessary jump scenes, and an ending that everyone saw coming from miles away. Also, the characters are quite frankly so whiny and unlikable that I was rooting for Sheriff Hoyt and Leatherface the whole time. So really, this Texas Chainsaw Massacre isn't so much about Leatherface as it is about the rest of the Hewitt family, more specifically Uncle Hoyt, who becomes Sheriff Hoyt when he kills a lawman, steals his uniform and assumes his identity. Then again, the real star of the movie is R. Lee Ermey as Uncle Hoyt. Ermey does his abusive drill-sergeant shtick, which made him famous in Full Metal Jacket. And while it's the most compelling aspect of all, a little goes a long way.

As horror movies go, if you're a fan of series check it out, but if you can sit this one out until it's on cable do so.

I wish I went to see The Marine instead.

So far...part 2

I’ve been out of work for, um - wow nearly 4 weeks now. I can’t believe I’ve been out of work that long and it doesn’t seem like it at all. I have been trying to keep busy though. I look for work daily. I am back at the gym. And life is back to normal. However, being lazy has totally killed my creative drive. There were a few things that I was working on, that I kinda stalled on because of that slight depression one gets when they are not working. I did however land a freelance gig with the bank temporarily. It’s not much, but it does supplement my income.

Other than that, I've been pretty much catching up on the Soaps I haven't watched in years. It took a few hours of researching online to get caught up on storylines and who the people are on each show. I only watch ABC shows, so I am officially a home body now. Then I get dressed and go to the gym afterwards. Then I come home and watch more tv and yet, not really focusing on my creative talents. I've been sitting in front of the computer as well, just searching through endless job listings that aren't really a good fit for me.

I should draw something. I really should.
I should write something. I really should.

I have a lunch meeting with an old co-worker coming up next week, who wants to introduce me to her friend who's a screen writer. Which is a very exciting prospect of what I want to do with my life. So we'll see how that turns out. That makes me want to go write something.

I hate how I am slowly doing things. Is this what happens when you're out of work and get no motivation. I did more when I was working, so why is it different now that I am not and actually have more time to dedicate to it?

I'll figure it out.

So far...

So if you noticed, I didn’t finish my countdown to my last moments at my job. Well there’s a reason. A lot has happened and I just haven’t had the time to write what’s been going on with me. To make it short, that Friday wasn’t as bad as I thought. It wasn’t as emotional as I thought it would be. There are a lot of people there that I am close to, but in hindsight, many of us know that we’ll keep in touch even though I am not there anymore. Then there are others who I will never see again. I was sad, but not too sad.

So what’s happened since then, well for starters, I was sick for like a week. In fact a few of my friends were going through the same sickness so that took a few days to get back from that, but it also put a damper on the job search. I fell into that lazy slump of being when you loose a job and just don’t want to do anything, but just being lazy around the house. So after a few weeks, I finally got back on track and started looking for work.

I’ve posted resumes on the usual websites and searched endlessly everyday for jobs that would fit what I want to do with my life. However, I haven’t been able to find too much. I found a few things, but of course, nothing has happened. That’s the problem with the open market. I need to go back to thinking of how people found jobs before the advent of the internet. I just point, click and send my resumes with the hopes that someone will call me in for an interview. It’s an new age sort of viewing that we just send out resumes electronically and hope like hell that we get a call back, but I am up against a lot of people in this city, but I’ll keep my head up.