akaichou-crimsonbutterfl Reviews

Hannibal (2013–2015)

Psychological thriller at its finest.

[9/10 · 17 March 2013]

If you're wondering, this drama does not follow the story line of the previous Hannibal film franchise. However, it does not mean that the series doesn't pack its own punch in terms of tension and suspense. (I'm in such awe, I feel inadequate trying to leave a review for this show. I won't reveal any more than what is available on the wikipedia page.)

Following protagonist Agent Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) into his mind and peering into the distorted lives and actions of serial killers, he comes across as a highly intelligent but often conflicted man, tormented by his own imagination and yet has to live it each day for the greater good.

This sense of vulnerability and instability caused by his personality (largely introverted and antisocial) is preyed upon by his psychiatrist, famed Hannibal Lecter, excellently portrayed by Mads Mikkelsen, and as all this is played out, the audience, privy to this knowledge will be gripped by suspense, and the never ending tension, even on scenes where nothing appears to be happening, the mood takes on a somber and tense tone.

For those who are concerned with the relative 'low level of gore', be patient. It takes its time to build and slowly escalate, bringing Graham deeper into the shadows and mental torment.

I can't emphasize how good the acting is, how vivid and artistic the abstract dream and killing sequences are. the fact that the soundtracks are well selected and not obnoxious all plays a part in creating one of the best viewing experiences ever. As a fan of psychological horror, I feel privileged to be able to take a small peek at this show ahead of broadcast.

Sinister (I) (2012)

Starts off strong, then to a bland finish

[6/10 · 13 February 2013]

I wasn't going to review this film, but then I felt like an unsatisfied horror fan customer by the time the credits rolled.

To start things off, the movie was so promising. The soundtrack was ingenious, with a heavy dose of indie ambient music, mixed with voices - many times I questioned whether what I heard was a moan from the scene or the music?

Cinematography was interesting. I liked the opening scene, the found footage really caught my attention, and the introduction of Ethan Hawk and his family's was well done. The long dolly shot with no cuts to open the movie kinda reminded me of a high end DV cam footage too. Real nice. No complaints in this department.

Characters were well played, kids not annoying, good acting all around. The young policeman looked a little like a criminal in his mannerisms, and he turned out to be fine, and the prof whom I thought was going to have a heavier role turned out to be really... small in his role. But I guess such details throw off the audience who like to guess where things are going. I'll give it to the film too for managing to avoid some cliché potholes, for example, with the boy in the box (brilliant).

Here comes my issues with this film (PERSONAL OPINION): PACING. In all of the jump scares, I wasn't scared at all. Not even a little heart jolt. In fact, when all of the jump scares occurred, I was focusing on the wrong thing on the screen.

I'm not a huge fan of jump scares, they are cheap, and really throw off the excellent mood setting that the cinematography and music and acting set. I personally found the other parts and basically anticipation to be more nerve wrecking than the actual scare itself. Some people have watched a similar movie 'Insidious' (same makers) and thought it was brilliant. I am one of the people who thinks Insidious works better as a 'circus freak show' type of horror as opposed to occult/supernatural horror.

As much as I love horror, blatant circus-like horror doesn't appeal to me. I found it blasé and 'too much'. Same issue I had with Insidious, I wished it was closer to authentic, classic, realistic and good supernatural horror. Or even a thriller. I don't mind a good psychological thriller either. But the scary 'kids' and the 'demon' were so .... blatant (i guess) till I was even mentally checking out the special effects, appliances and paint jobs they had for their characters.

I wasn't thrilled about the ending either. The last 10 minutes of the movie felt like it was trying to rush its end, 3 pictures from the prof and he doesn't shed any new light on the situation (I think Ethan Hawks got the message when the box of films refused to be burnt and gone), one very urgent phone-call from the policeman suddenly explained everything and why the family was about to be f***** in 2 seconds (really???), and with this new revelation and sudden info to process, the viewer is just supposed to accept that?? No fighting chance for the man's man Ethan Hawks at all? They seriously had him lay there like a sushi, while fate is being dealt out to him. MEH. Not even a surviving journal to detail his findings?

And what's that blood streaked wall of murals about? A bloody painted unicorn and is that a cartoon dick I see that zooms into a face?? I can't even tell if they are trying to insert humor or something. *Facepalm*

I thought the final footage was gonna be for a NEW family to chance upon but NOPE! We are shown what happens to the girl as she sketches her last picture; it feels like an extra reel, bonus footage, and the time would have been better spent on for example, showing how butchering is done the SAW fashion.

I was so disappointed how they served up a meaty intro and then gave up at the end, resorting to cheap techniques, cuts to speed time up, choosing to dwell on scenes that are not important, and neglect elaborating on what's most important.

If people didn't promise me the heavens when they left their reviews, I wouldn't be THIS disappointed. I would still say watch it, but please, don't expect the world lest you get disappointed like me.

===============SPOILERS HERE==============

I seriously question how little children are able to physically commit tall-order murders. From planning how to execute them, to having the kids acting like they aren't planning like they are going to kill people, to making sure that evidence left behind doesn't point to kid killing family, that's a lot of work! Most psychopaths put years into perfecting murder!!

Pulling dead weight into the pool isn't easy. Pulling dead weight into a car ain't easy. Tying dead weights up a tree ain't easy. It literally requires little kids to know strong knot-tying skills. Did the demon teach them all that? OMG. Demon has a future in education!

Sacrifice (I) (2011)

Very bad acting with limited vocabulary.

[1/10 · 25 May 2011]

Vulgarities or not, I'm always more attracted to good storyline. Seeing that it's a recent movie, I thought at the very least it should be more presentable. Alas, what do I see, but gratuitous almost sex scenes (with no private part exposure), excessive foul language, and bad acting from the side characters left a nasty nasty taste in my mouth.

The acting is even more forced and unnatural than acting school, and these mafias (not the most difficult role) can't even do it convincingly. However I must make special mention and (I specially went to find out his name)Zion Lee playing Rook if i'm not wrong, the guy who is naked half the time and speaks nothing but F words, wins the champion in bad acting. It's so bad, I don't even feel like wasting my words to explain why.

Heavily laden with drug abuse, sexual content, and obscenities, on the overall, it's crass and unwarranted. A movie experience that people in this century shouldn't even be experiencing.

The Sacred (2009)

Predictable

[4/10 · 21 March 2011]

I love to watch horror and watch a good plenty of them for work. Trust me when I say that Sacred is at best good for only 1 time viewing.

This movie is very standard. Mysterious place, nosy American youths decide to investigate. They stick their noses where they don't belong, disregard warnings, and have to pay for it. Does that sound familiar? It's almost like 'The Ruins' (2008), but I believe the latter does a better job at building tension as well as laying out the plot.

The characters are not very likable, neither do they look convincing to me as students. We don't know very much about their background, and they appear to be typical youths with a severe lack of situational awareness, and an impairment in natural acting. Since I wasn't able to stop thinking that these people are actors, immersion into the movie was also not possible as well.

I won't say much about this film since I don't care for it much, but if this is up your tree, go ahead.