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9
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7 |
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10
= Highest Rating |
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Guest
Review by Troy
Howarth |
Insurance
fraud investigator John Trent (Sam Neill) is lured into a nightmarish
odyssey when he sets out to debunk the disappearance of famed
horror writer Sutter Cane (Jurgen Prochnow)...
Following a disastrous flirtation with the
Hollywood studio machine with 1991's Memoirs
of an Invisible Man, John Carpenter took a vacation from
filmmaking for several years, only surfacing to host and co-direct
a campy, albeit uneven, anthology film for cable titled Body
Bags. His career having been derailed by the failure
of The Thing (1982) and his enthusiasm
for the filmmaking process having been gradually soured, Carpenter,
for some fans, joined the ranks of Tobe Hooper in the "washed
up" category. 1995's In the Mouth of Madness,
however, despite a rocky reception and poor box office, offered
solid evidence that, given decent material and creative control,
Carpenter was still a viable talent.
A self-reflexive homage to Stephen King and,
in particular, H.P. Lovecraft, the film melds film noir, horror
and surrealism in a truly effective and original fashion. Far
more experimental and outre than most of his other works — Carpenter,
after all, has modeled himself after sensible, down-to-earth
craftsmen like Terence Fisher and Howard Hawks and not the likes
of Federico Fellini or Luis Buñuel — it nevertheless
continues his fascination with tough as nails protagonists,
claustrophobic settings and well orchestrated "cheap scare"
sequences. The screenplay by Michael De Luca is rife with clever
touches and ideas, and Carpenter's sensibly solid approach to
the material gives it a certain matter-of-factness that melds
surprisingly well with the surrealistic imagery. Though often
criticized for being a film that starts off well but loses steam
at the end, I'd say it's one of the director's most successfully
realized projects. The witty finale doesn't offer any sense
of closure or pedantic explanation, and this is perhaps a problem
for some viewers, but it fits perfectly with the film's playfully
amusing self-reflexive approach. True, Carpenter fails to deliver
a 'bang!' for the film to end on, but that only contributes
to its off-kilter effectiveness.
The
cast is unusually good for what is, ultimately, a low budget
horror picture. Sam Neill (The Piano,
Jurassic Park) is absolutely wonderful
as the cynical Trent. Clearly modeled after the noir archetype
played by Humphrey Bogart, Trent is a no-nonsense character
and much of the film's appeal stems from seeing his well ordered
point of view disintegrate into all-out hysteria and madness.
Julie Carmen (Fright Night 2) is
easy on the eyes as his verbal sparring partner (shades of Hawks'
His Girl Friday are very apparent)
but she is a rather dull and colorless performer; as such, some
of their scenes together lack the necessary spark and detract
from the film's effectiveness. Much better is Jurgen Prochnow
(Das Boot) as the messiah-like
horror writer, who has managed to transform pulp fiction into
a kind of religion. Prochnow gets some of the film's best dialogue
("Reality isn't what it used to be") and makes for a
simultaneously creepy and compelling antagonist. Smaller supporting
roles are filled by the likes of Charlton Heston (Ben-Hur,
The Omega Man), David Warner (The
Omen, Titanic), Bernie
Casey (Boxcar Bertha, Black
Gunn) and John Glover (Gremlins 2,
Payback); as expected, these dependable
performers do a fine job with their limited screen time.
Like so many Carpenter
films, In the Mouth of Madness
flopped in theaters but has gone on to become a cult favorite;
seeing it now, one retains hope that, someday soon, Carpenter
will impress once again with his newest feature.
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| New
Line's release of In
the Mouth of Madness
is commendable. The 2.35 framing is, of course, essential to any
Carpenter film. The transfer is solid and apart from some instances
of grain in some of the darker scenes, Gary Kibbe's cinematography
looks just fine. Print damage is not an issue. A fullscreen version
is also included, but it is to be avoided. Sound tracks include
the option of 5.1 Surround or regular stereo surround. Both have
a great deal of punch and serve up Carpenter's catchy music score
to its best advantage. Extras include a theatrical trailer, talent
bios and a commentary track with Carpenter and cinematographer
Gary Kibbe. The track is, alas, a total disappointment. Carpenter
normally does a fine commentary on his own, but he does his best
work with a good sparring partner. The overly laid back and monotone
Kibbe, however, fails to measure up to the task and while Carpenter
tries his best to keep things lively, it's a dull and unenlightening
experience. Considering that this is one of his best, and most
clever, works, one can only hope that maybe New Line will revisit
the title at some point and record a new track — maybe Sam Neill
would be up for joining his director this time around?
3/23/05 |
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