An interesting slowburn thriller that looks like a typical gorgeous rural giallo, but feels like it wants to be an enigmatic psychological study. But it's too awkwardly plotted to truly get involved in the lead's plight and or the significance of the rest of the small cast of characters. And it doesn't pay off in the end anyway, wasting the mysteries and not having more than 20 seconds of Klaus Kinski. Goes nowhere but looks beautiful on the way, with beautiful photography of the town and some creepy and convincing lunar dreamscapes.
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The Blob 1988
Some of the practical effects here are among the best of the 80s, suitable for framing and right up there with the best shots from other body horror classics of the time, like The Fly and The Thing. Like those two horror milestones, this is a remake that improves on its 1950's predecessor, but unlike them it doesn't have the atmosphere and intensity to match the gore and elevate it to classic status. It's a standard-issue 80s romp with a few moments of brilliance. And look for Donovan's dead-ringer son.
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Who's Singin' Over There? 1980
Having basically no familiarity with Yugoslavian culture and only the vaguest understanding of the historical context here, I felt like an outsider watching this. Still, the eccentric cast, crazy plot and broad comedy was enough to make it very funny and likeable even with the more subtle layers of black comedy being lost on me. And I guess because of this, the sobering ending seemed even more of a depressing drag for me than I was prepared for.
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All Quiet on the Western Front 1930
Deserves its classic status, but with some caveats. The narrative template for the basic war film is basically already in place here, and the battle scenes and practical effects are convincing even now. But the acting exists in some strange transitional period where we're moving from silent to sound, and it's highly riffable, the expressions highly .giffable, and the story's compelling themes are turned into bludgeoning weapons by the script delivery. It's all delightfully naive BUT it clashes with the…