Jakksid Reviews

Cold Sweat (2010)

Slow and tedious

[3/10 · 5 November 2011]

First of all, I have nothing against slow-paced movies. In fact, some of my all time favorites are considered downright boring by many. However, when a film contains scenes where the alleged "heroine" has escaped and is standing by a doorway and watching the "villian" (the guy I ended up rooting for after countless acts of stupidity from the two central characters) harmlessly typing on a computer yet does nothing... There is a problem. Three minutes later, and after two long shots of a weapon lying on a nearby table from her point of view, and still nothing has happened... Well, then things simply become infuriating. In fact, the film even cuts away to another scene halfway through, only to return to the woman gaping at the bad guy as opposed to, you know... moving. At all. By this point most people have just stopped caring and all tension is lost.

That scene pretty much summed up the movie for me. Repeated acts of stupidity + nothing happening = A lot of frustration and boredom for the viewer. Half the scenes are in super slow motion, the characters who were meek suddenly become tough, wisecracking (well, the script/actor's attempts at it) heroes due to an inconsistent script and the acting is sub par to cap it off.

My Final Rating - 3/10. "Cold Sweat" would definitely work better as a 30 minute short than the full length feature movie it was dragged out to be. All in all, there are about three good scenes in the whole movie, hence the rating. Although to find those scenes you need to ride through the tedious waves of the film at a snail's pace which, in my opinion, is not worth the effort.

Bad Meat (2011)

Entertaining movie let down by terrible editing

[7/10 · 1 November 2011]

First of all, I am aware that "Bad Meat" suffered a lot of problems during its production. The original director Rob Schmitt was replaced by Lulu Jarmen, who was making her directorial debut (and first experience in film whatsoever according to IMDb.) There were also issues with funding, and at one point it was announced that the film had been canceled. So it was understandable that the final product would probably be a little bit shaky at times.

However, it still wasn't any less painful to see just how badly edited the film was due to its potential. The final cut of "Bad Meat" was less than eighty minutes long. After a very confusing opening sequence the film quickly switches to a clear plot about a group of unruly teenagers arriving at a Boot Camp run by over-aggressive workers. Although things soon go from bad to worse for as the staff begin to contract a disease, causing them to vigorously release every bodily fluid known to man and then turn into flesh-eating maniacs. It's fairly simple and it works, however it is continuously and rudely interrupted from brief clips developing from the opening sequence over and over again, which don't contribute anything to the storyline. I would later find out these were not added until the last minute after the original cast had finished filming, nor were they actually scripted (which does make a whole lot of sense seeing how awkwardly they are crammed in.) This could not be made more apparent by the abrupt manner in which the film just sharply ends and cuts to the credits, with no prior indication it was nearing the conclusion. In fact, at the time I felt that the film was really starting to get interesting.

The most frustrating thing about "Bad Meat" is that it was very fun to watch, and even if the opening and ending had been remotely logical it would have been a very solid horror film overall. Yet due to the merciless butchering it received in the editing room the final result is too short and too uneven to be considered a good movie.

My final rating - 6.5/10. The bulk of the film was thoroughly entertaining hence this rating, and despite the extremely shoddy editing, it is not a movie I regret seeing. Hopefully someone has another crack at making the plot clearer before publicly releasing it.

Livid (2011)

'Livid' - Good Yet Flawed

[7/10 · 31 October 2011]

I saw "Livid" at the FrightFest in London a few days ago and had neither particularly high nor low expectations before the film started. When the credits began to roll 88 minutes later the final result was similar to my opinion of Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury's directorial debut in 2007 with "Inside" – it was good but flawed. However, any comparisons of the two films end here as they are on the opposing sides of the same genre and very different in their own right.

The plot evolves around a young woman named Lucy who is beginning her training as an in-house caregiver. During her visit to an unattended old woman who is in a cerebral coma and living in an isolated, looming mansion, she discovers that years earlier she had allegedly placed a large treasure within one of its many locked rooms. As Lucy returns home the viewer learns of her struggles which are both financial and emotional due to a recent loss. Soon after she is persuaded to return to the house by her boyfriend and his brother in search for the supposed treasure and, in doing so, this is where their lives begin to go rapidly downhill…

Firstly, I'll start with the good elements of "Livid." The cinematography and visuals are absolutely beautiful and really make it a pleasurable viewing experience, especially when combined with the pulsing, brooding score of the film. The actress who plays Lucy is fantastic in her starring role, playing a likable character but with genuine depth, and there are no complaints to be made about the supporting cast. Furthermore, and probably the most importantly – the film is absolutely terrifying at times. This was primarily psychological but also aided by some fantastic imagery.

Regarding the weaker parts of the movie, I felt that the first two thirds of the film are substantially better than the final third. This is because, to put it simply, the film does not seem to know which genre it wants to be. The transaction it makes when switching is not a particularly smooth one. Because of this, many gaping plot holes are left open and at times it is a struggle to make sense of what exactly is going on. Another issue with "Livid" was that the filmmakers seemed too dependent on "jump" scares which cheapened the movie and often ruined both the tension and flow. Finally, I think the very ending was much sillier than intended.

So whilst I had my issues with "Livid" I still believe that the strength of the positives more than compensates for the negative aspects, and that overall this is a genuinely good movie. I would recommend this to any horror (or even fantasy) fan. Considering the graphic nature of their previous film, it was interesting seeing the filmmakers experiment with such a different approach to the genre. And all in all, I believe it was successful.

7/10

Cemetery Junction (2010)

Enjoyable

[7/10 · 14 April 2010]

"Cemetery Junction" is Ricky Gervais's second attempt at directing a major motion picture. A fan of his previous work in television but having been disappointed by "The Invention of Lying" I was not sure what to expect. The final result was a 95 minute movie that was flawed yet very fun to watch and something to lose yourself in for a short period of time.

The plot of "Cemetery Junction" evolves around three young men in 1973 who are desperately trying to avoid spending the rest of their lives in working class Reading and ending up like their parents. The film itself is mainly a drama but there is plenty of well-placed, classic Gervais comedy throughout. The majority is setting the scene and developing the characters. However, this leads to the final twenty minutes seeming quite rushed with slightly choppy editing and throwing in a few clichés which it had previously done a good job of avoiding. The acting was brilliant for the most part, but I felt Christian Cooke (who probably has the most screen time out of the trio of friends) was a little wooden.

Overall, "Cemetary Junction" is an enjoyable film that should please Gervais fans yet can be more widely appreciated as he is attempting to do something different and, in my opinion, does a pretty good job of it.

7/10