Scott Mescudi – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl: I have always wanted to have the title, Vampire X.

Vampire Bat: You have been identified as Vampire O for a long time.

Vampire Owl: Well, why not X? Everyone has wanted to be Agent X.

Vampire Bat: Agent X has never been real – there was only a hoax related to it.

Vampire Owl: I have heard that most of the mass movies of humans have such agents.

Vampire Bat: They have such things because they run out of ideas.

Vampire Owl: I do feel that the X letter suits this movie better.

Vampire Bat: Well, its better suited for a slasher movie for sure.

Vampire Owl: You know how much we have missed the true slasher films.

Vampire Bat: Well, they should come back now for classic horror stories – the encounter should happen now or never.

[Gets some French fries and three cups of Munnar tea].

What is the movie about? :: Maxine Minx (Mia Goth) has always wanted to become a famous actress, and she does not mind how it comes, as the easy option seems to be to become a pornographic actress. As she wishes to be part of such a film during a time when theatrical pornography market is booming, she goes on a road trip with her friends and crew for an upcoming adult movie. The crew includes her own boyfriend and producer Wayne Gilroy (Martin Henderson), other actors Bobby-Lynne Parker (Brittany Snow) and Jackson Hole (Scott Mescudi), director RJ Nichols and his girlfriend Lorraine Day (Jenna Ortega). While Nichols want it to be a serious piece of cinema, Lorraine is not happy with the work. Bobby-Lynne and Jackson seems to be very much interested in each other as far as the work is concerned, but as they reach the farm where they are supposed to shoot, things do not seem to get any better. The whole place is supposed to have had soldiers staying there during the Civil War, but that might not be the only history that the house would have.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: In the early moments itself, it seems to be clear that there is something strange about the area as well as the old couple who owns the house, but the crew doesn’t seem to mind as they are able to shoot in peace around such a deserted area. The name of their movie is The Farmer’s Daughters, and the setting and the atmosphere seems to suit it very well. The old lady is very much attracted to Maxine, and wishes that she was young like her and friends who seems to enjoy their youth so much. At the same time, Lorraine, who is tired of being considered prude by others, wishes to participate in one of the intimate scenes, much to the dismay of Nichols who finds the change to his script and his lover’s change of heart to be depressing. He decides to leave the place, but finds out that it is not that easy to leave the farm, and others would also discover the same sooner or later. Now the question remains if any of them could manage to leave the place alive.

The defence of X :: The movie provides the feeling that it goes straight to the good old horror slasher roots, without hesitating like the newer additions to the genre which seems to have a few more doubts than required. This would be like sending an e-mail to those older generation of slashers and letting them know that we are still here, even though instant messaging is more of the trend. There are some memorable scenes including the alligator attack which just misses the protagonist, the meeting of two characters played by the leading actress, the elder woman invading the protagonist’s room and the final scenes of gore. The victims here are not that dumb as the characters who run around in horror films either, as the danger here would feel minimal for anyone. The movie is very much atmospheric, and the world here is suitable to be place any terrifying creature. The idea of being in a cabin in the middle of nowhere never really gets old, and never limited to Evil Dead and The Cabin in the Woods which serve as perfect examples.

Positives and negatives :: This movie is an example of something coming out of nowhere all of a sudden and keeping us interested. One might feel that there could have been more strength with its evil presence, but that side is kept rather realistic here. There are no supervillains who keep coming back for more after they seem to be dead, a case which has been repeated so many times, very recently with Halloween. The movie does have the stereotypes, but none of them used for the sake of being there, as there is some fine blending happening around here. This is also the kind of movie which makes you long for those old slashers, and a return to the past is provided with elements of nostalgia. The ideas of beauty and its fading with old age gets a special attention here, as we look at the process leading to disastrous events. The ending could have actually been more powerful, as the use of some elements resemble deus ex machina. What rises above all of these is the certainty that this is a worthy slasher horror that takes us to that childhood which had horror that lasted and eternity.

The performers of the soul :: Mia Goth was part of A Cure for Wellness with a mysterious performance, and it is nice to see her again in a genre which seems to suit her so well – the looks also come as a bonus along with her performance. It would seem that she blends in here so well that we never feels that she is not that any of those characters. Even when nothing happens, there is something about her – the swimming scene of her might be one of the spookiest among them, as danger is on the trail, and so seems many other mysterious elements. Such natural performances have been rare in slasher films. The makeup for the older version is also well done. Jenna Ortega is there as what seems to be another version of the protagonist, but there is the feeling that we do not really see enough of her here. There could have been something eerie about her in the end, but there is the feeling that the character is abandoned. Brittany Snow’s role is rather predictable, but still leaves a mark. The rest only needs to play along according to the needs here.

How it finishes :: We have not had many classic slasher movies around here which could bring us some nostalgia along with quality. This one does the job pretty well though, and in a world where slasher horror is losing power, a movie like this is very much required. There might be many reasons to deny the slasher its due, but we can always have more to accept it as a genre that demands our attention. When we consider the horror movies of the year, X is that film which has managed to grab less attention. But it is also that kind of a movie which deserved more. It would not be the perfect slasher film with that near unstoppable killer on the loose, but does manage to gain the success that it deserved with moments that will stay with us for some time. After all, being in a cabin in the woods or in the middle of nowhere makes all the impact in different forms. There is no better place to be, for any horror fan – we enjoy watching the terror unfold in such a setting, with atmosphere playing a major part in raising the level here.

Release date: 14th April 2022 (Amazon Prime Video); 18th March 2022 (Theatre)
Running time: 106 minutes
Directed by: Ti West
Starring: Mia Goth, Jenna Ortega, Brittany Snow, Martin Henderson, Owen Campbell, Stephen Ure, Scott Mescudi

<<< Click here to go to the previous review.

<<< Click here to go to the full bloody slasher.

<<< Click here to go to the most classic slasher return.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

* “Too much gaming details warning” for the first three paragraphs 😛

Games of the soul :: How much value does a movie based on video game have in this world? If we look at movies like Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, that should be zero both for the critics and the box-office, a fate which it never deserved – unlike DOA: Dead or Alive which was expected to have such fate. Then there are the Resident Evil and Silent Hill series which grosses a lot more than the critics see in them. Well, they don’t like my personal video game favourite Hitman, neither do they come close to being interested in Max Payne or Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time which were actually much better than what we are made to believe about them. If a movie based on a video game is somewhat like that game, can we blame the makers? Isn’t it how the movie is supposed to be? I am looking forward to the upcoming movies based on Mass Effect, Deus Ex, Warcraft and Assassin’s Creed. There is going to be a lot more to explore in them, especially the first one I mentioned. I have a feeling that it is that movie which will change the opinion about video game based movies.

NFS reloaded :: My first love for NFS series began with Need for Speed II SE which I came across at a time when I was actually playing more Road Rash than ever. I loved the game and decided not to retreat to the earlier version. I didn’t like Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit any better even as I spent quite a long time in it. Then came Need for Speed: High Stakes which I chose to hate, which made me take a small leap into Midtown Madness but that stayed only for a short time. Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed brought me back though. Then Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 made me realize that I was trailing in graphics card, and I had trouble with the speed of the game. After upgrading my system, I went directly into Need for Speed: Underground which remained my favourite until Need for Speed: Underground 2 made the whole thing awesome, with Brooke Burke around. From that moment, NFS remained my favourite racing game genre, and the stage was set for the greatest racing game I have ever played; Need for Speed: Most Wanted. I loved almost everything about it, and loved being chased by cops towards the beautiful sunset, except the fact that Josie Maran was no Brooke Burke.

The desire for speed :: Need for Speed: Most Wanted had set such a high level of racing game experience which was nearly impossible to overtake. It was one of the most interesting racing challenges ever, and it was that kind of a mission that you always wished to go for, or even more than was in our minds. The next game, Need for Speed: Carbon couldn’t match its predecessor in anything, and I decided to uninstall it soon enough. Need for Speed: ProStreet also came up with nothing special for me. Need for Speed: Undercover was last NFS game I ever played, and that was the end of my NFS life. Due to its alleged similarities with ProStreet, I decided against checking Need for Speed: Shift, and Need for Speed: Nitro was not made for PC which kept it completely out of the equation. Then there was the 2010 version of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, Need for Speed: Shift 2 Unleashed, Need for Speed: The Run, Need for Speed: World and Need for Speed: Rivals, not to forget the 2012 version of Need for Speed: Most Wanted. But I had got rid of my graphics card by then, and the only games left with me now are the older non-racing ones.

What is it about? :: Tobey Marshall (Aaron Paul) is a street racer and a mechanic who struggles for money. He is interested in Anita Coleman (Dakota Johnson), but due to his financial condition, that is rather impossible for him as she becomes more and more of a former lover. Still, he is having a pretty good time with his friends, enjoying the little things of happiness. But as one of his friends and Anita’s brother Pete Coleman (Harrison Gilbertson) get killed in an illegal race event involving the three, and the third person disappears without evidence, he is sent to the prison. With the help of Julia Maddon (Imogen Poots) and a number of his friends who worked with him in the garage, he decides to take on Dino Brewster (Dominic Cooper), the man responsible for the death of his friend. But as Dino has announced a bounty on stopping him, and also with so many cops on his tail, the question remains if he can make it to the big race where he intends to defeat, humiliate and expose the lies of his enemy. Even as this one is indeed a big race, it doesn’t remain just another race, as it is personal.

The defence of Need for Speed :: It is nice that they decided against using computer-generated imagery. Aaron Paul is good as the protagonist and he remains solid in his character, but the more impressive one is the charming lady who accompanies him, Imogen Poots who has the best moments of the movie with her, as she seems to bring such beauty and energy into the sequences which is rarely seen, and not to forget the fun – the best lines are there when she is there, and the same is the case of the incidents. One has wonder if she actually stole them with an irresistible charm! I haven’t seen a more lovable performance from any female character in any racing movie before. The cars remains awesome, especially the Ford Mustang which we have all driven in the game. Each actor who plays any of the hero’s friends make sure that none of them lags behind. The villain is without surprises, but manages to be a typical villain of a movie like this. The nostalgia that this movie brings is priceless. As we know which kind of audience will go for this movie, what more can they ask for?

The Claws of flaw :: The one big problem with the movie is that this could have been anything else – a random racing movie rather than being that NFS movie which the fans have been waiting for. There is no real speed in the progress of the movie, especially in the first fourty five minutes or so. It is so slow that one comes to the early conclusion that this is neither fast or furious, and nothing can match Fast & Furious franchise. We can’t deny that after watching this movie. There is almost nothing about it that can make it different from the usual racing movies of the past, and there is no imagination as the game franchise had. The plot is ordinary, concerning the revenge of a former street driver who is sent to jail for the wrong reasons against the man who is responsible for the same. There is not enough car races either. Nobody is going to enjoy this one more than the wonderful games in the super-hit franchise. One might often wonder if this was made due to the need for a movie based on this video game rather than based on the need for some speed. Yes, this movie needs more speed and a better imagination in story.

How it finishes :: Now I only play three games, Age of Empires II: The Conquerers, Age of Wonders III: Shadow Magic and Unreal Tournament, that too once in a blue moon. But Need for Speed is that game which refuses to go out of memory, especially the flare of awesomeness which was Need for Speed: Most Wanted. It was never really just a game for most of us, as it was a wonderful racing life supported by another world which was inside the game. Yes, there were many others which were to become my favourites later, including the big three action-graphics extravaganza; Mass Effect, Oblivion and Prototype, but NFS always belong to a different world, and its strength has been its supporters, as there have been almost no gamer that I have known that have failed to play at least one NFS game with some interest. There is always the Prince of Persia, Hitman, Age of Empires, Unreal Tournamet, Tomb Raider, Max Payne, Resident Evil and such franchises which become the all-time favourites of some people, and then there is Need for Speed which is liked by all who likes the others too. Lets hope the same about this movie.

Release date: 21st March 2014 (India); 14th March 2014 (US)
Running time: 130 minutes
Directed by: Scott Waugh
Starring: Aaron Paul, Imogen Poots, Scott Mescudi, Dominic Cooper, Dakota Johnson, Ramón Rodríguez, Michael Keaton, Rami Malek, Michael Keaton, Harrison Gilbertson, Stevie Ray Dallimore