It's movies like May that give me hope about the future of Horror. This movie seemed to pop out of nowhere fully formed and should be treasured by any fans of clever and original left-field film. There are echoes of other great Independent genre pictures here- a little bit of Nadja, a touch of Liquid Sky, a dose or two of flavor from Re-Animator- but May stands up totally on its own.
The story concerns a creepy young woman who was burdened with a lazy eye and a psychotic mother and grew up to be criminally insane and yet remain utterly innocent. Angela Bettis' performance is a marvel- a plethora of wildly clashing impulses are contained and rendered with a strangely sexy hyperkinetic energy. Misunderstood and abused by male and female lovers, May sets out to construct her ideal friend using the body parts from all those she has encountered. May is awfully handy at crafts and is also a veterinary nurse, so she has the necessary skills to get the job done.
The first 2/3rds of the fim show May quietly unraveling, and the film's last act is a gory, unsettling and yet totally hilarious grand guignol as May sets about collecting the needed parts for her ideal friend. Lucky McKee has the ideal eye for the subject matter and the deep, moody photography paradoxically sharpens the laughs.
This is the kind of work that Independent cinema should be about. It's this kind of unclassifiable, idiosyncratic genius that deserves an audience, not the paint-by-numbers dreck oozing out of Hollywood.
disconcerting disconnection
good flick. odd flick. oddly good flick.
this movie is so compelling that i have viewed it several times. Angela Bettis is both haunting and beautiful in a manner that is both very real and knowingly off center. this is not a movie for people who need a movie to spell out every detail for them - the story is moved through style. this movie looks great.
May is a girl who desires to be connected to others, is open to that possibility, but has no means to that end. others use her, then shun her, then, well, i ain't gonna ruin it. perhaps think of this flick as "CARRIE" meets "HEATHERS".
Roger Ebert gave this movie a 4-star review.
Roger Ebert gave Garfiled a 4-star review.
Roger Ebert gave Dark City a 4-star review.
Roger Ebert gave Dick Tracy a 4-star review.
Roger Ebert gave Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow a 4-star review.
I think that about sums it up. Steer clear of this one unless you're some kind of sicko that likes watching cats be killed and people being chopped up and sewn back together.
Like Carrie before it, Ginger Snaps uses horror-movie conventions as an inspired metaphor for puberty. When beautiful but reclusive goth teenager Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) is attacked by a monstrous wolf on the eve of her first period, her body starts changing in a big way, as do her suddenly lusty, feral appetites. Director John Fawcett masterfully balances the expectations of teen horror exploitation (blood, bodies, sex, smart dialogue, and good old-fashioned monster-movie scares) with clever black humor and tender sisterly solidarity. Only devoted sister Brigitte (gloomy Emily Perkins) knows the truth, and even as Ginger's abrupt transformation threatens their once unbreakable friendship, bonds of blood and love keep them together: Brigitte disposes of Ginger's victims... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Emily Perkins - Katharine Isabelle Director(s): John Fawcett DVD Release Date: Released the 02 September 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Brigitte (Emily Perkins), having dispatched her werewolf sister in Ginger Snaps, is now living with the fact that the wolfsbane antidote concocted in the previous film is not a cure for lycanthropy. It can merely hold the transformation painfully at bay. Mistaken for an addict to more traditional drugs, Brigitte is picked up and placed in combination drug rehab centre and burn ward (don't ask). She needs to escape, as she is being stalked by a werewolf who seeks a mate. Brigitte reluctantly allies herself with Ghost (Tatiana Maslany), a young girl who is more than a little disturbed.
The original Ginger Snaps is one of the best werewolf movies ever made. One could hardly expect the sequel to reach such heights, and, sadly, it doesn't. The idea of putting a werewolf into a... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Brett Sullivan DVD Release Date: Released the 13 April 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Few things are more sure-fire creepy than huge abandoned buildings, and Session 9 has one of the eeriest buildings you've ever seen. A hazardous-materials-cleanup company has been hired to eliminate asbestos tiles and other toxic material from a gigantic mental hospital that had been shut down in the 1980s. But as one member of the team starts to nose into old files in the office, he uncovers a series of tape recordings of psychiatric sessions--nine of them--related to a notorious sexual abuse case. Soon, toxic materials and dark spirits start to merge. Like The Blair Witch Project (and most horror movies, really), Session 9 is longer on atmosphere and dream logic than story--but the atmosphere is effectively unsettling. A strong cast (including Peter... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): David Caruso Director(s): Brad Anderson (II) DVD Release Date: Released the 13 August 2002 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Although I enjoyed Ginger Snaps Back - The Beginning, and wouldn't have missed it for the world, I found it to be too much like the first. Something was missing, but I couldn't put my finger on it. But the setting, and the actors and supporting actors were fantastic.
It's sick! It's twisted! It's House of 1,000 Corpses, and it's more fun than a wholesome bowl of "Agatha Crispies"! Dropped by two studios (Universal and MGM) and doomed to obscurity until Lions Gate Films gave it a limited theatrical release, Rob Zombie's gonzo horror flick is a blood-spattered throwback to the gore-fests of the '70s, lending new meaning to the term "box-office gross." Most critics misunderstood this unbridled exercise in graphic style and violence, but for devoted horror buffs it's a refreshing rebuttal to the comparatively "polite" frights of the post-Scream era. While paying homage to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Last House on the Left, Motel Hell, and other gory classics, Zombie's ramshackle plot (two young couples are... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Sid Haig - Bill Moseley - Sheri Moon - Karen Black Director(s): Rob Zombie DVD Release Date: Released the 12 August 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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