Seen and not seen's, recommendations and queries on top films in general.

[tiny_tove]

The Rotten Link - grotesque yet arty latin American flick, starting with an almost funny feel that files under Calvaire / Ex Drummer territory, yet in a rural environment, and then degenerate in ultra violence, Most available taboos covered. Approved.

[Atrophist]

Beau Is Afraid
Not impressed. Self-indulgent, not nearly as clever as it thinks it is, and much longer than it needed to be. So far, each film this director's made has been worse than the one before.

It's on my watchlist. Enjoyed Hereditary, Midsommar was sort of ok (already self-indulgent but still...), don't know what to expet from this but I read bad reviews pretty much everywhere. Aster's ego is enormous, and I guess he thinks he's too clever for just directing a "simple" movie, especially if it's just a horror movie.

Robert Eggers, a director he is often associated with having also directed a folk-horror film like the Witch, is a way more solid director.

I havent even seen The Lighthouse, but based simply on The VVitch and The Northman I have no problem declaring Eggers a far superior filmmaker. Although I am very sceptical about his Nosferatu remake. Especially since the Werner Herzog/Klaus Kinski remake already is fantastic.

[Atrophist]

The Rotten Link - grotesque yet arty latin American flick, starting with an almost funny feel that files under Calvaire / Ex Drummer territory, yet in a rural environment, and then degenerate in ultra violence, Most available taboos covered. Approved.

Damn. Ex Drummer and Calvaire indeed are pretty wild. I will have to look for this one.

[tiny_tove]

The Rotten Link - grotesque yet arty latin American flick, starting with an almost funny feel that files under Calvaire / Ex Drummer territory, yet in a rural environment, and then degenerate in ultra violence, Most available taboos covered. Approved.

Damn. Ex Drummer and Calvaire indeed are pretty wild. I will have to look for this one.

slightly "funnier" and less desperate yet still desperate and sick as fuck.

BTW does any Non ITalian user appreciate the grotesque/sick as fuck TV and Cinema work fo Ciprì & Maresco? I often used tham as background video when i didn't have time to work on cutups and I'm working on a visual hommage to their work. If you are not familiar I'll be very very happy to share.

[Antirealist]

here are some recommended movies by Alexey Fedorchenko

First on the Moon
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0459929/?ref_=nm_flmg_t_14_dr
perhaps one of the most artful pseudodocumentaries ever, a fake history of soviet cosmic programm in 1930's. shot on film!

Angels of Revolution
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4163138/
Together with five Soviet avant-garde artists, hero of the Russian revolution Polina Schneider travels to Siberia to 'civilize' the native Khanty and Nenets tribes, for whom interaction with foreigners is forbidden by the gods, through art. executed in very nice psychedelic colors.

Railway
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1386956/?ref_=nm_flmg_t_11_dr
A school principal and his friend hijack an old steam locomotive and start a travel along the abandoned railroad - to deal in coal. The film plot is seemingly simple: two friends (a school principal Parentsov and a truck driver who is referred to as Father) steal a large amount of coal and take it by an old abandoned rail into the vast borderless steppe where they want to sell it. Driver's numb son Misha and a strange and formidable being, Engine Driver, accompany them. The story of a huge locomotive that the group uses for transporting the coal runs parallel to the main plot line.
It's kind of funny movie with slight hints of magic realism and easy surreal feeling.

Celestial Wives of the Meadow Mari
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2536306/?ref_=nm_flmg_t_8_dr
23 short stories about the Mari women, their mythology, folk magic traditions and today of the Mari people. some mythic, some funny, some vernacular horror'ish.

[Atrophist]

While I'm still waiting for The Rotten Link, I watched another, brand new film from Argentina that is getting a bit of hype at the moment:

When Evil Lurks (Cuando Acecha la Maldad), by Demian Rugna.

The film is set in a world where demonic possession is at least a somewhat common and accepted part of everyday life. Towns have emergency guidelines to follow in the case of an outbreak of possessions, and there are commonly known and understood rules on how to deal with possessed individuals (shooting a possessed person or animal with a firearm will instantly transfer the possession to the shooter, for example).

There is also an organization of some kind, known as the Ministry, that sends "cleaners" to safely dispose of possessed animals and people.

The film essentially follows one such case that goes badly wrong. Brothers Pedro and Jimmie find a dead cleaner, his body chopped clean in half, on their farm. And the infection/possessions spreads from there.

There are lots of shocking moments and plenty of gore in the film, some of it involving children, heavily pregnant women, as well as elderly ladies. Thankfully none of it feels gratuitous.

The film falls short of being an instant classic due to the slightly overcomplicted plot and a few unsuccesful setpieces towards the very end. Still, one of the better horror films of 2023 for sure.

Btw is you're interested in this one, director Demian Rugna's (perfect name for a horror director, no?) previous film, The Terrorized (Los Aterrados) from 2017 is well worth checking out.

[Phenol]

Finally got around to see Naked Blood - thank you for that recommendation! Cold atmosphere, tasteful and sexy gory scenes (not many, but done well - I'm hungry and horny simultaneously now, haha...) and excellent synth soundtrack with a lot of calm yet disturbing electric humming and crackling. A bit Coil-like at places, even. Speaking of good soundtracks, I also recently watched Next of Kin which has a cool score by Klaus Schulze. The movie itself is a haunted house kind of story, but not quite. It's set in rural Australia which is refreshing and it generally feels different from all the run of the mill horror movies we've grown accustomed to. Recommended, but not without its flaws.

[Antirealist]

movies by Hungarian director György Pálfi, diverse, uncommon, surreal. approximately Lynch'ish, but no copycat stuff.

Taxidermia (2006)
three generations of freaks, a pervert soldier after ww2, professional speedeater in soviet Hungary and an embalmer from modern times. a must see, i did it 4 times.

Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen (2012)
short cut up scenes from hundreds of old movies are made into archetypical story of man and woman. this plays with your brain unexpectedly.

Free Fall (2014)
seven surreal stories from same house, one from each floor, different families, different moods. a must see, going to do it third time in nearest days.

[Atrophist]

movies by Hungarian director György Pálfi, diverse, uncommon, surreal. approximately Lynch'ish, but no copycat stuff.

Taxidermia (2006)
three generations of freaks, a pervert soldier after ww2, professional speedeater in soviet Hungary and an embalmer from modern times. a must see, i did it 4 times.

Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen (2012)
short cut up scenes from hundreds of old movies are made into archetypical story of man and woman. this plays with your brain unexpectedly.

Free Fall (2014)
seven surreal stories from same house, one from each floor, different families, different moods. a must see, going to do it third time in nearest days.

I've seen Taxidermia ages ago. I was completely unaware of the other two films, must investigate!

Most recently watched film is Rotting in the Sun by Sebastian Silva.

Silva and instagram influencer/comedian/whatever Jordan Firstman play fictionalized versions of themselves in the film. Firstman travels to Mexico City to meet Silva for some TV show project, until something goes badly wrong -- don't want to spoil it. It's an interesting concept, if a bit random and too cynical for its own good. Pretty good sendup of the way we're all immersed in social media nowadays.

Btw there's a lot of gay sex in this film, the scenes are brief but very explicit, and scattered throughout the film. So if that's not your thing you might consider skipping this one.

[tiny_tove]

movies by Hungarian director György Pálfi, diverse, uncommon, surreal. approximately Lynch'ish, but no copycat stuff.

Taxidermia (2006)
three generations of freaks, a pervert soldier after ww2, professional speedeater in soviet Hungary and an embalmer from modern times. a must see, i did it 4 times.

in my top 10 movies ever. the eating competition is pure geinious, so the colors and ost

[BlackCavendish]

Lately I've been catching up on old films that I missed through the years. Sadly no big surprises except for the first one:

Perfect Blue - excellent animated film by Satoshi Kon (his debut if I'm right), on the themes of stalking and idols.

Gothic - Ken Russell on the meeting between Shelley, Polidori and Byron, revised in a psychedelic and fantastic key. Son of its time, it has a very strong 80s aesthetic. Some nice moments visually speaking, if you like the director of course, but nothing more.

The Mothman Prophecies – inspired by the urban legend of the same name, which is also probably the only good reason to watch this movie. Catastrophic thriller with more questions than answers. Casting Richard Gere as a main character was probably not a good idea.

[tiny_tove]

Gothic - Ken Russell on the meeting between Shelley, Polidori and Byron, revised in a psychedelic and fantastic key by Ken. Son of its time, it has a very strong 80s aesthetic. Some nice moments visually speaking, if you like the director of coruse, but nothing more.

a movie I never understood. The surreal moments are very nice, but as said it oozes of 80s aesthetic campness which really never made it work for me. And I'm obsessed by 99% Russel's work, especially Crimes of passions that is in the canon of c031 inspiration.

[Phenol]

El cadaver de Anna Fritz (2015). Not as visceral as one could have hoped for, but some pretty explicit necrophilia scenes and the fact that almost all of the movie is set at a morgue makes it an okay watch anyway. A little too polished for my taste, though. The 5.9 score on IMDB feels pretty accurate.

[BlackCavendish]

Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror

I thought worse, I hoped better.
The first part covers the origins, with focus on the notorious 3: Wicker Man, Witchfinder General, Blood on Satan's Claw. After that there are dozens of clips from more or less obscure films in sequence, supported by interventions of directors, writers, journalists.

The documentary then moves on to analyze other stuff that can roughly be traced back to the concept of folk horror: classic zombie filmography (voodoo), Japanese horror (local spirit tradition), and so on.

What is missing in this documentary lasting 3 h and 15 min. is some analysis of folklore that goes beyond the basic notions. And in a FOLK horror documentary one would expect it. In its place, unluckily, there are a few rants on contemporary themes (exploitation, the role of women, inclusion) which are quite out of place in a documentary like this.

However, it's worthy of a viewing if you find the subject interesting.

[Atrophist]

Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror

I thought worse, I hoped better.
The first part covers the origins, with focus on the notorious 3: Wicker Man, Witchfinder General, Blood on Satan's Claw. After that there are dozens of clips from more or less obscure films in sequence, supported by interventions of directors, writers, journalists.

The documentary then moves on to analyze other stuff that can roughly be traced back to the concept of folk horror: classic zombie filmography (voodoo), Japanese horror (local spirit tradition), and so on.

What is missing in this documentary lasting 3 h and 15 min. is some analysis of folklore that goes beyond the basic notions. And in a FOLK horror documentary one would expect it. In its place, unluckily, there are a few rants on contemporary themes (exploitation, the role of women, inclusion) which are quite out of place in a documentary like this.

However, it's worthy of a viewing if you find the subject interesting.

I've been meaning to watch this for years. What keeps putting me off is the excessive lenght, and also "folk horror" isn't really that much of an obsession for me.

However, the same creator's book House of Psychotic Women: An Autobiographical Topography of Female Neurosis in Horror and Exploitation Films I cannot recommend highly enough.

Part personal memoir, part a collection of film essays, all "bitches be crazy: the book". Zulawski's Possession is the central film in it, and the author says she's watched it dozens of times.