Review: New horror feature ‘Abject’ throws everything at the wall. Does anything stick?

David R. Williams Newest Horror Feature Film 

ABJECT

A year after the death of their only child, a couple journey to an isolated retreat to try and work through their grief and save their disintegrating relationship. There however the Wife experiences strange visions and horrific dreams. The Husband sinks deeper into an alcoholic daze. Violence erupts, But death is only the beginning of their torment.


The film begins with the definitions of the words Psychotic, Psychosis, and Abject. What serves as both a jarring opening and inevitable title card is striking. After that, ABJECT is a painfully slow descent akin to watching bad theater. Performances feel forced. Close-ups of Joe Gallagher washing knives are overkill. Did they use an entire set of knives making dinner? Certainly not. Juxtapose that with Helena Simon in a red-lit bathroom hearing voices, losing her shit, and it all feels nonsensical, disjointed, and inconsistent in the end. Dreamlike sexual scenarios had me scratching my head. The tropes are unnecessary. Listen, props to Simon for going all in as the sheer absurdity ramps up. Unfortunately, it all lands as rather silly.

Helena Simon

Gallagher‘s character is described as an alcoholic, yet there is no consistent sign of this behavior other than offering his wife a drink, which she twice refuses. His character is a complete asshole. Most of his interactions with his wife feel unjustified. After an intense, albeit over-the-top, confrontation in the third act, there is an incredibly accosting moment. Let that serve as a trigger warning for viewers.

Here’s what works best in ABJECT. I could not have exclaimed WTF more times while shaking my head as I sat through the film. Those are the moments you count on and make you a genre fan. An unexpected twist in the form of a two-and-a-half-minute monologue blows everything sky high. The final reveal is undoubtedly intriguing. Unfortunately, the rest of the film’s shenanigans don’t add up. All said and done, as a feature film, it is a letdown. But, if you took a scalpal to the script, you’d have one genuinely slick short.

ABJECT is now available to rent NOW on Amazon Prime, VUDU, Flixfling, and Blu-Ray 

 

Release Date: July 28, 2002

Run Time: 1Hr 15 MIN

Produced by

David R. Williams for Razor Wire Alchemy

Directed by David R. Williams

Starring Helena Simon, Joe Gallagher, Andy Rich, Clementine Jane Simpson

Written by David R. Williams, Constanza Bongiorni, Music by Frederic Mauerhofer, Stephen Rosenthal, Special makeup effects by Roy Knyrim/SOTA FX


 

Hayden Christensen Is ‘Outcast’ Alongside A Horrendously Laughable Nicolas Cage

OUTCAST_3_Low+Res

This is how I felt watching the movie.

You never know. Sometimes you’ll stumble upon a movie that surprises you. Unfortunately, the only surprise I got watching Outcast was how terrible it was. Boring and bland, the only highlights are the parody of acting that is Nicolas Cage. He finally shows up about an hour in and steals each of his short scenes due to his absurd accent and silly hairstyle.

OUTCAST_10_Low+Res

The story is supposedly about a young son exiled after his older brother kills the emperor to take over the throne. However, it really just follows Jacob (Hayden Christensen) rescuing the son of the emperor and his sister in their return to get the throne back. I didn’t care. There’s zero character development. None. The best part is the stunts, but that’s to be expected as the first-time director, Nick Powell, has a heavy background in stunt coordination. There are also a shocking amount of slow-mos that are completely unecessary.

OUTCAST_9_Low+Res The directing is laughable. It’s all crazy angles and hand-held that’s really distracting. The score is a rip-off of a bad TV movie and causes constant eye rolls. (Complete with the Gladiator-type singing of battle scenes.)

OUTCAST_8_Low+Res

What is with Hayden’s hair? For a guy who never showers, it certainly looks clean and coiffed. He even has the same hair in flashbacks! Odd.OUTCAST_7_Low+Res

Can we also talk about how it’s all in English? That’s something that REALLY bugs me. This is supposed to be The Far East in the 12th Century. It’s just silly to hear all the Chinese speaking perfect English. This used to be par for the course, but it’s so nice how recently even TV shows embrace native languages. Subtitles are really not that big of a deal.OUTCAST_5_Low+Res

In between the bits of crazy sword fights and Hayden Christensen is lifeless and forgettable. Nicolas Cage, however, is in rare form with an over-acted performance that must be seen to be believed.
OUTCAST_4_Low+Res

Available on demand, digital and March 31st on Bluray and DVD.

Melissa’s Bluray Review: James McAvoy Is Outrageously Intense In ‘Filth’

The Filth

Look out, Filth is worth every bit of that R rating, in sight as well as sound. If you’re still up for it, what follows is a heartbreaking, devastatingly intimate and intense performance by James McAvoy.

Released last fall in Scotland, Ireland and England, Filth was dropped on American audiences only a few short months ago. Liz and I actually attended a special screening in May, where James McAvoy and Imogen Poots introduced the film. It was a star-studded event with Patrick Stewart and David Bowie amongst the crowd. Vanessa Redgrave inadvertently held the door for me. It was quite the moment. Oh, who’s that? Why it’s Parker Posey. Yeah, it was a good time.

Read More →