The Funhouse.

Review #2606: The Funhouse.

Cast: 

Elizabeth Berridge (Amy Harper), Cooper Huckabee (Buzz), Largo Woodruff (Liz Duncan), Miles Chapin (Richie), Kevin Conway (Freak Show Barker / Strip Show Barker / Conrad Straker, The Funhouse Barker), Wayne Doba (Gunther Twibunt, The Monster), Sylvia Miles (Madame Zena), William Finley (Marco The Magnificent), Shawn Carson (Joey Harper), Rebuka Hoye (Strip Show Dancer), Jack McDermott (Mr. Paul Harper), and Jeanne Austin (Mrs. Ellen Harper) Directed by Tobe Hooper (#348 - Poltergeist, #1297 - The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, #1909 - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, #2134 - Lifeforce, #2281 - Eaten Alive)

Review:

It has been a while since Tobe Hooper had made a movie for theaters, if you remember. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) was followed up by Eaten Alive (1976). Then there was the miniseries adaptation of Salem's Lot that came out on CBS in 1979 (of course, internationally there was an alternate, much shorter cut). At any rate, Larry Block had a script about a carnival and teenagers, and Hooper was surely interested in doing something that would remind him of one of his favorite movies with Nightmare Alley (1947), so it was basically a match made in heaven. Independently financed and shot in Miami (the setting was Iowa, but who is noticing), the film was subsequently acquired by Universal Studios for distribution. that saw a select group of rides and attractions from a defunct carnival while the oddball animals and actual carnies came from, well, travelling carnivals. Rick Baker was responsible for the effects of the monster that basically looks like an albino, complete with a mime playing the character. It was a mild success with audiences, and Hooper was soon approached by producer Steven Spielberg to direct Poltergeist (1982), which was an even bigger hit*. As noted by Hooper in a making-of video in later years, he was quite proud of the final result with The Funhouse (if you've read Quentin Tarantino's Cinema Speculation, he also comes to that conclusion)*.

I suppose there is something unnerving that can come from the carnival or stock show. Sure, I wouldn't be the first to say it, mainly because I generally didn't have that many spooky moments looking at the rides or people operating it. At any rate. I can say that this was a pretty fun movie anyway because of the style and tension that is played here for a slowly-developed slasher (when the body count is over three, yea, that sounds about right). For about half of the 96-minute runtime, one is focused on the atmosphere that slowly envelops our main group of four (with one stowaway) before the mayhem starts, but I can see where the likability of the film hinges a bit on how much you can take from such rascal behavior (with exactly one person playing a teen that actually was in their teens with Berridge); this is the type of movie that freely cribs from both Psycho [1960] and Halloween [1978] in its intro scene for the sake of doing so (Hooper was quoted as saying it was there to let people know quickly they were watching a "genre picture" and make the film "a little safe"). But the real showstopper is the "funhouse" itself with how intimidating it all ends up feeling with its wide spaces and traps that doesn't have to border completely on reality because of the delight in playing in illusions (complete with some stellar timing with a crane). Berridge has plenty to try and carry with such an ordinary role that goes through basically a different world with the carnies as opposed to the tense "real world" with her parents (with a brother that thinks shower terrorizing is funny) and a would-be lover and his dumbass friends* (to say nothing of the goofy youth that basically is in the movie to suggest some sort of lesson of being a sneaky dweeb, at least I suppose so when all he does is just get caught and released). I'd say she does about as well as possible with vulnerability as the old-masked killer, wearing a Frankenstein mask, gives way to the dysfunctional horror of man and his deformed would-be "man" of the present.  Additionally, as basically the ringleader of the rascals, Chapin makes for a worthy enough person to get snatched by the claws of "easiest mark to get killed in a slasher", while Conway and his numerous roles of the seedy barkers does end up being compelling to roll things along in gawking at animals, women, whatever seems nasty enough for a movie like this to show. It stalks terror in being stuck in a place rather than, say, excess amount of gore. Average or not, it is a pretty entertaining movie to actually experience in the sights and sounds of slowly being enclosed in a space one shouldn't step in and being left at the hands of one's own ingenuity and in some ways, luck to maybe leave with some of their mental state or body intact. In that sense, Hooper made a delightfully nasty little movie worth a look into.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Song of the day!

*Totally no controversies at all about it, no invented stories about it or people still perpetuating stupid conspiracies cough cough Joseph Khan is a hack, cough cough.

*Oddly enough, Hooper liked the subsequent Dean Koontz novelization of the movie that was quite substantial in its plot.

*When I used to have consistent friends and went to the stockshow one time, I can say we never thought about messing with the workers or trying to snatch the funds, so there's that.  

Gettysburg (1993).

Review #1242: Gettysburg.

Cast: 
Tom Berenger (Lieutenant General James Longstreet), Jeff Daniels (Colonel Joshua Chamberlain), Martin Sheen (General Robert E. Lee), Sam Elliott (Brigadier General John Buford), Stephen Lang (Major General George Pickett), Maxwell Caulfield (Colonel Strong Vincent), Kevin Conway (Sergeant Buster Kilrain), C. Thomas Howell (Lieutenant Thomas Chamberlain), Richard Jordan (Brigadier General Lewis A. "Lo" Armistead), James Lancaster (Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Fremantle), Richard Anderson (Major General George Meade), Royce D. Applegate (Brigadier General James L. Kemper), John Diehl (Private Joseph Bucklin), Joshua D. Maurer (Colonel James Clay Rice), Patrick Gorman (Major General John Bell Hood), Cooper Huckabee (Henry Thomas Harrison), and Brian Mallon (Major General Winfield Scott Hancock), with narration by W. Morgan Sheppard. Directed by Ronald F. Maxwell.

Review: 
How does one do proper justice to a film such as this? It is a film that runs at 254 minutes (with 17 additional minutes added for the Director's Cut), making it one of the longest films released by an American studio. The original intent was to broadcast this as a miniseries for TNT, after ABC turned down backing the project earlier in the decade. However, it was felt by network namesake and famed media mogul Ted Turner that the rushes coming in were good enough to release in theaters. The film did indeed get shown on TNT the following year, shown on two nights to a viewership of over 20 million; it did not prove to be a major success at the box office, making back only twelve million on a $20 million budget owing to a limited release of less than 300 theaters at its peak distributed by Turner-owned New Line Cinema and being limited to few screenings per day (due to the length, naturally), but it did prove to be a hit on the video market, with its attention to authenticity ensuring that it would have a place with any history or Civil War buff. This is a film that had been sitting on my shelf for over a decade, and I had wondered exactly how to approach this over the years (alongside the question of exactly how many times my father must have put the film on to watch, with its disc having to be flipped over to experience both parts), but I find that at long last it needs to have its day in the spotlight. One must admire the courage to try and make a film like this, adapted from the 1975 historical novel The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for his novel) with adaptation by director/screenwriter Maxwell that used many writings from the book; it is a sprawling spectacle that was filmed on location in Pennsylvania, including scenes recreated on the actual battlefield (allowed by the National Park Service), with plenty of Civil War reenactors to go around to contribute the scale that this movie wishes to show at times through the three-day battle.

What is a film about a battle if not one with a detailed ensemble cast such as this, headlined by Berenger, Daniels, and Sheen most terrifically. Berenger (the first in a line of actors with some sort of big facial hair) shines amiably, having plenty of moments to give credence to such a key role with careful tenacity, which helps carry the first half and chunks of the second well. Daniels plays his side of the coin quite well for himself, showing plenty of humanity and courage that also crucially carries well for the first half. Sheen is just as efficient, blending right in with such a key figure that makes his appearance count without struggle, thoughtful and determined as per the expectation. The rest of the cast make certain they stick out whenever they show on screen, whether it is from the beginning or midway in, acting to the standard one could expect in filling into men long gone but infused into the legend of Gettysburg. People such as Elliott, Conway, Howell, and Huckabee make it count for that first half (the first two hours at least), while others such as Lang, Jordan, and Lancaster accompany what they can in the latter half. It can be easy to see why a project like this was made in the first place, and it does become apparent that this did indeed belong on a movie screen, where the full weight of battle and drama can come out for all to see again and again through the hours.

I will admit that the first half does tend to run a bit better than its second, building its time and characters with a bit more handling than the second half, although the film never has a moment when it all crashes down or feels too out of depth. It is patience and appreciation that carries the tide rather than boredom or confusion. It yearns to cover ground on both sides of the conflict, not devolving itself into one easy corner - it may be about a battle, but it sure makes time to show besides the battle, of these men who have fought other men of their country, a war of freedom and rebellion (or whatever view one has historically) that raged for four years. Despite the war persisting on for two more years after Gettysburg, this proved to be a key fight, and the film makes sure to never lose focus on earning its moments, and the jewel is the execution of the grand battles and accompanying music from Randy Edelman. It isn't a perfect films by any means, and it certainly isn't the easiest one to stick through, but the curious ones at heart who love their history or ones deeply invested in long sweeping spectacles will (and have) find much to appreciate and care for here. Craftsmanship and hard driving work from all involved rule the day here, showing great care and authenticity for such an important event with balance and honor.

Happy Independence Day, folks. I sure hope you enjoyed this unique double-header and I hope you enjoy the 4th and all that comes with it - there are plenty of things to try and cover this month, and a little bit of patriotism helps along the way in getting there. I'll be happy to see where the Independence Day Feature takes me for next year and beyond.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.